First: What is Fast Fashion?
“Fast fashion can be defined as cheap, trendy clothing, that samples ideas from the catwalk or celebrity culture and turns them into garments in high street stores at breakneck speed. . . In the late 1990s and 2000s, low-cost fashion reached its zenith.
Online shopping took off, and Fast Fashion retailers like H&M, Zara and Topshop [and a host of others] took over the high street [fashions]. These brands took the looks and design elements from the top fashion houses and reproduced them quickly and cheaply. With everyone now able to shop for on-trend clothes whenever they wanted, it’s easy to understand how the phenomenon caught on.”[1]
The advent of social media brought a new level of marketing capability. Fashion magazines had been the typical first line of introduction to international fashion trends. Now, social media feeds are capable of dispersing the latest fashion trends at lightning fast speeds. We can all thank the Paris Hiltons, the Kardashians, and all of their followers who share the latest fashion trends across the multiple social media outlets for much of this phenomenon. As the old adage goes...’keeping up with the Jones’ has become ‘keeping up with the Kardashians’ in the 21st Century.
So what is the negative impact of ‘fast fashion’ on our climate?
The fashion industry is the second largest polluter of clean water after agriculture: reduction in costs and speed of production forces the industry to cut corners with cheap and often toxic production methods. All of which, are dangerous to the garment workers, the consumers, and basically to every living life form on the planet. The problems are multi-layered but here are a few to begin with:
- The use of cheap, toxic textile dyes also harms animals, as the toxic dyes that are released in waterways and micro-fibres that gets ingested by ocean life.
- Cheap Polyester is one of the most popular fabrics and is derived from fossil fuels and contributes to global warming.
- Cotton, while a natural fiber, requires enormous quantities of water and pesticides for growing and processing in developing countries. Results include risks of drought, creating stress on water basins and more.
- Leather also impacts the environment, with 300kgs of chemicals being added for every 900kg of animal hides tanned.
- Beyond leather, Fur, it isn’t always Faux Fur. Here’s a horrifying thought: “ A recent scandal revealed that real fur, including cat fur, is actually being passed off as faux fur to unknowing shoppers in the UK. The truth is that there is so much real fur being produced under terrible conditions in fur farms, that it’s actually become cheaper to produce and buy than faux fur.”[2]
- Finally, the Landfill Issue: Fast Fashion makes us believe we need to shop more, creating a constant sense of need and ultimate dissatisfaction. It has been recorded that only 0.1% of all clothing collected by charities and take-back programs is recycled into new textile fibre. “In the UK alone, 235 million pieces of clothing were thought to have been sent to landfill in spring 2017. . .The real issue with Fast Fashion is the speed at which it is produced, putting a huge pressure on the people and the environment. Recycling and small eco clothing ranges (when they are not only for greenwashing) are not enough to counter the “throw-away culture”, the waste, the strain on natural resources and the issues created by Fast Fashion. The whole system needs to be changed.” [3]
So who are the retailers/players in ‘fast fashion’?
H&M is the oldest of the Fast Fashion retailers, having opened as Hennes in Sweden in 1947, expanding to London in 1976 and reaching the States in 2000. Other big names include; Forever 21, GAP, and Old Navy just to name a few other examples, but there are many.
So what measures can we take to reduce the negative impact of ‘fast fashion’?
- Shop Used Clothing shops: These are commonly resale shops that are taking in much of the garment and household items that would otherwise wind up in landfills.
- Shop at stores that sell sustainable wearing apparel made ethically in ‘green’ shops. It may take some research, but it is worth the search to save our environment by being responsible consumers.
- Sustainability is now a major buzzword in the clothing industry, so look for it and make sure they are truly selling sustainable attire and not simply ‘greenwashing’ their data by making their company seem environmentally responsible.
- Mix and Match is a good way to get a lot of different looks out of a small wardrobe.
- Trade clothing: There are many resale shops that will trade for your unwanted clothing where you can trade/ sell quality clothing items. Arizona Trading Company in Kansas City and Lawrence is a trendy second hand trade in shoppe. Check them out here:https://westportkcmo.com/businesses/shopping/arizona-trading-company/
- Mend or alter your clothing: if you are skilled in sewing, change the look of your garment by changing buttons, the collar,sleeves and/or necklines to update the look. There is always fabric dyes and fabric paints, as well. Repurpose and get CREATIVE. [4]
- Have fashion trade parties with your friends.
- BUY LESS: Ask yourself, do I need this or do I want this. Need and want are two very different things. Of course, if all you own are jeans and t-shirts, and you have just landed a job in a bank, you will need business attire, but make that purchase count with clothing that will last years instead of winding up in the landfill in 3 to 6 months.
A huge shout out to millennials who are driving the future of consumer economics across the globe. The majority of them have “grown too clever for mindless consumerism, forcing producers to become more ethical, more inclusive, and more liberal”. Our economy is not what it once was and many millennials have acclimated and learned when and how to do without and their buying habits are being watched by big corporations who will, hopefully, acclimate.
A final note. There are many layers to the ‘fast fashion’ problem as it is quite complex. Statistical information is not readily available to consumers. Most in the fashion industry would rather we were blind to where and how our clothing is being made, and even more clouded to ‘who’ is making the clothing. This is a global problem that we can fight by speaking out. With the many cuts to production costs to increase corporate profits, the cut to human welfare is most egregious and this includes the treatment of the workers and the toxins that hurt all of us.
A excerpt from the National Garment Workers' Federation (NGWF) based in Dhaka, India, who has been fighting for the rights of garment workers in Bangladesh since 1984: . . . "Bangladeshi factory workers face appalling conditions. Many are forced to work 14-16 hours a day seven days a week, with some workers finishing at 3am only to start again the same morning at 7:30am. On top of this, workers face unsafe, cramped and hazardous conditions which often lead to work injuries and factory fires. Since 1990, more than 400 workers have died and several thousand more have been wounded in 50 major factory fires. Sexual harassment and discrimination is widespread and many women workers have reported that the right to maternity leave is not upheld by employers. Factory management also take steps to prevent the formation of trade unions, a right protected under the Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining ILO Conventions, which Bangladesh ratified in 1972." [5]
End Notes:
- Good On You, Accessed online, 25 May 2019. https://goodonyou.eco/what-is-fast-fashion/
- Ibid.
- Allison McCarthy, Are Our Clothes Doomed for the Landfill? March 22, 2018, Online: Remake, accessed 24 May 2019. https://remake.world/stories/news/are-our-clothes-doomed-for-the-landfill/
- re/Make World, Accessed Online, 25 May 2019.
https://remake.world/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Remake_Resources_BeginnersGuide.pdf - War on Want: Fighting Global Poverty Accessed online, 27 May 2019. https://waronwant.org/sweatshops-bangladesh
Additional Information:
Guide: A helpful guide with creative ideas can be found at on the web at re/Make: https://remake.world/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Remake_Resources_BeginnersGuide.pdf
Journal: Gwozdz, Wencke & Nielsen, Kristian & Müller, Tina. (2017). An Environmental Perspective on Clothing Consumption: Consumer Segments and Their Behavioral Patterns. Sustainability. 9. 762. 10.3390/su9050762. Accessed Onine 27 May 2019.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316701662_An_Environmental_Perspective_on_Clothing_Consumption_Consumer_Segments_and_Their_Behavioral_Patterns
