Fast Fashion
What is Fast Fashion?
Fast fashion is a tactic used in the fashion industry to produce low-quality products inexpensively to keep up with the latest trends. Companies will often use ethically questionable methods to produce these cheaply made clothes (more on slide __) so that they can provide a wider variety for their consumers at a lesser price.
The Influence of Trends
Trends come and go quickly - especially microtrends. Microtrends are a more specific trend that is particularly brief. Social media platforms - TikTok, Instagram, etc - spread these trends to millions of people at a time. When people see the rising popularity of the latest fads, they’re more inclined to buy these items. Younger audiences are especially susceptible to this idea so that they can fit in with what’s popular at the moment. These clothes are typically made of cheap material and cheap quality, creating a shorter life span than those of higher quality. These clothes are made to be thrown out quickly, creating the necessity to buy more fast fashion.
The effect of fast fashion is very prominent compared to just 20 years ago. Today, 80 million pieces of clothing are bought in a year, that’s 400% more than the past two decades. This “need” to keep buying new clothes to keep up with the trends that just come and go only encourages waste.
The Effect on the Environment
Because fast fashion is essentially designed to be thrown away, clothing and fabrics accumulate in landfills. This waste is more often than not, not biodegradable. This means that the clothing will simply sit in a landfill for years and years.
The fashion industry contributes 10% to global carbon emissions. That’s double what the airline and boating industries contribute combined! Even dyeing fabrics has environmental repercussions. 20% of global wastewater comes from the dyeing process. Additionally, most fabrics that become clothing are made from synthetic materials (polyester, nylon, acrylic, elastane). The creation of these materials uses heavily processed fossil fuels, emitting tons of greenhouse gases. Additionally, this process contaminates nearby water sources. For example, the water in the River Ganges in India is no longer drinkable due to the released chromium that contaminates the water.
Greenwashing is a tactic used by many companies to trick consumers into believing their products are environmentally sustainable. They use misleading marketing and false claims about the environmental benefits of their product. You can stay aware of any greenwashing attempts by asking yourself:
How transparent is the company?
Does the company offer any explanation as to how they source their products?
How do they treat their workers?
Are they using any eye-catching, trick words? Like “conscious”?
Ethical Concerns
Low prices can only be achieved through cheap production methods. Companies will use a variety of ways to spend as little as they can on product production, most of them ethically questionable. Third-world countries with exploitable labor laws allow companies to take advantage of the cheap labor costs. These workers earn as little as $3 a day. Most often companies will go through China, India, and/or Bangladesh since these countries don’t have any laws to protect their laborers. They have no rights, no union, and no pension. However, because these companies don’t officially hire any of their workers, nor do they actually own any of the factories they work in, there are no repercussions and they haven’t held any accountability for poverty wages or factory disasters.
Examples of Fast Fashion Brands:
Shein
H&M
Zara
Forever 21
Brandy Melville
Abercrombie & Fitch
Victoria’s Secret
Uniqlo
Boohoo
Everlane
Keep in mind that, if they are consistently putting out new items onto shelves every day for low prices, it’s most likely fast fashion.
Alternatives:
You may have seen your favorite brand name on the list above. You don’t have to stop shopping for these brands necessarily, but there are more environmentally friendly alternatives for those that can opt for them.
Buying higher-quality clothes is one of them. Yes, they are more expensive, but they also last much longer.
Buying second-hand clothing is another great alternative. Purchasing clothing at thrift stores like Goodwill or Salvation Army keeps clothing out of landfills. Additionally, instead of throwing out clothing, donate it to said second-hand stores.
You could also buy ethically sourced, sustainable clothing. Patagonia is a great example of a brand that does this. They ensure fair compensation for its low-income employees, provide good working conditions, and use renewable energy in the production of their high-quality clothing.
You could even make your own clothing or simply repair them. While this option does require more work than the others, learning to sew can help save not just the environment, but also your wallet. Being able to do simple repairs on clothing keeps you from having to keep buying, and the clothes out of the landfill.
