Hey everyone. So we've been doing this show now for several years and we just want to take a moment to hear from you all.

What have you all liked about the show? What do you want more of? What do you want less of?

We'd love for you all to fill out a survey over at marketplace.org

slash survey. It's short, it's anonymous, and honestly it'll help us a lot as we

keep growing the show. Again you can find that survey at Marketplace.org slash survey.

Last fall, I had plans to go into the office in New York.

I was excited to see some coworkers for the first time in years, plus some I hadn't met in real life

yet.

The day before, I was trying to figure out what to wear.

And sifting through my closet full of skinny jeans, everything just felt

outdated or too small or just the wrong shape. Since the pandemic, I've been working remotely. I spend most of my days and nights and sweats, and I just don't shop as often as I used to.

So I did what I often find myself doing 24 hours before an event. I rushed over to the mall like a frenetic

contestant on supermarket sweep. I eventually found these loose-fitting black jeans that looked

in style. The mall was minutes from closing. The jeans were $140. As I handed my car to the cashier, I tried to ignore the sinking feeling in my stomach.

The next day when I wore them in the office, I realized they were wildly uncomfortable.

Too much excess fabric at the crotch area, stiff, not even that flattering. I was annoyed and embarrassed that I'd spent $140 on something

I'd convinced myself I needed because they were in fashion.

I like to think of myself as someone who's able to resist trend cycles, but I also know that

the fashion industry is designed to influence us.

The whole business model of brands like H&M and Zara is to quickly churn out high volumes of

clothes to keep up with trends. Every week there's a new season.

A while back I was talking about all of this with our producer Alice Wilder

...