Rapid production lines, swift trend dupes, low-quality synthetic materials, competitive pricing… Sounds familiar? Then you may be engaging in fast fashion, whether you’re aware of it or not. But what’s the real issue with fast fashion, and how can we deal with it on an individual level?
Fast fashion is a design, manufacturing, and marketing method focused on rapidly producing high volumes of clothing - bringing inexpensive, yet on-trend styles to the consumer. Shopping used to be an occasional event - but in recent years, clothes have become cheaper, trend cycles have sped up, and shopping has become a mere hobby.
Nowadays, fast fashion brands (favourites including Shein and Primark) produce about 52 micro-seasons a year, encouraging a “throw-away” culture that creates tonnes of waste every year. Selling low-quality merchandise keeps costs incredibly low, such as Missguided’s £1 bikini that broke the internet in 2019. Brands like H&M, Topshop, and Zara earn millions, while workers are being paid redundantly. And that doesn’t take into account the unending hours, lack of resources, and physical abuse endured. In the documentary “The True Cost,” author and journalist Lucy Siegle sums it up perfectly: “Fast fashion isn’t free. Somewhere, someone is paying.” This was finally acknowledged following the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh in 2013, which killed over 1000 garment workers - drawing to light the true price of the £5 t-shirt.
Fast fashion’s carbon footprint is undeniable, too. The industry has a heavy carbon footprint, responsible for up to 10% of total global emissions, and is estimated to increase by 50% by 2030. Toxic chemicals, dangerous dyes, and synthetic fabrics seep into water supplies, or sit abandoned in landfills, releasing toxins into the air. Plastic microfibres have been found everywhere: from the summit of Mount Everest, to placentas carrying unborn babies. The long-term effects of this issue are yet to be experienced.
The anniversary of the Rana Plaza collapse is now Fashion Revolution Week. But further action is required. So, what can we do? Slow fashion offers a mindful alternative, with in-house production, labour rights, and natural materials working together to create garments that will last. Some companies to look into are Organic Basics, Yes Friends, and Harvest and Mill. But before investing in a completely new capsule wardrobe, consider flipping the clothes in the back of your wardrobe: give that old jumper new life by turning it into a crop, follow the label care instructions, mend old garments wherever possible, and responsibly recycle them at the very end of their life.
We buy more clothes per person in the UK than in any other country in Europe. And our addiction has but grown, with online searches for ‘cheap clothes’ increasing by 46% during the first coronavirus lockdown. So the next time you’re browsing Boohoo, before you add a new item to your basket, ask yourself: is the social and environmental impact worth it? Or are you willing to let others pay the price?
References:
https://www.thegoodtrade.com/features/what-is-fast-fashion/#:~:text=Fast%20fashion%20is%20a%20design,styles%20to%20the%20end%20consumer.
https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/fashion-clothing/what-fast-fashion-why-it-problem
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