Off the Rack (OTR) or Ready to Wear (RTW) Defined

Ready to wear is the common term for describing clothing that has been factory manufactured to a finished state and is ready for purchase by the consumer without further alteration. Although "ready to wear" clothing used to have a negative connotation as being synonymous with cheap clothing, today ready to wear clothing encompasses a wide range of clothing price points and quality levels. While it is still possible to buy cheap ready to wear items at large mega stores it is becoming far more common to see high profile fashion designer created ready to wear items at upscale department stores. Unlike their cheap counterparts these designer created ready to wear items can sell for hundreds of dollars.

Some high end ready to wear items are produced in limited runs so as to give the sense of uniqueness and help drive up the price. It is important to remember, in these situations, that ready to wear is the antithesis of haute couture or bespoke and despite the limited run anything ready to wear is not unique. Ready to wear is a step down in price and quality from made to measure items though the two terms are often confused. With made to measure items a standard sized pattern or sometimes a garment is tailored to a customer’s specific measurements.

With the increased quality and availability of upscale ready to wear items, bespoke and haute couture clothing is currently losing ground to the ready to wear market.