A Huff Post columnist - Jen Craven - challenged herself to go 365 days without buying any clothing or accessories
She found the experience challenging, but noted that she realized she tended to wear the same items over and over again while ignoring many of the others that she owned. She also mentioned that she now has a new attitude about buying clothes and realized that "it's not the things in life that make you happy." (Craven, 2021)
Hmm. Where have we heard that before?
She also acknowledged that wearing fast fashion is inconsistent with her values as it both destroys the environment and exploits workers.
More than 60 percent of fabric fibers are now synthetics, derived from fossil fuels, so if and when our clothing ends up in a landfill (about 85 percent of textile waste in the United States goes to landfills or is incinerated), it will not decay. (Schlossberg, 2019)
Stories about sweatshops in Vietnam and Bangladesh - where 1,134 workers died and 2,500 were injured in a building collapse in 2013, continue to pop up from time to time. But the problem is actually closer to home too. A federal Labor Department investigation in 2019 of Nova Fashion in Los Angeles, showed that workers were being paid as little as $2.77 and hour. (Kitroeff, 2019)
So when 82% of Millennials say that they "are concerned about the environment." What does that really mean?
Ms. Craven ended her column by saying that not only is she going to buy fewer clothes from now on, but she is also going to check out local resale shops and online vendors like Poshmark and TheRealReal.
Good for her. But what about the Instagram influencers who are stoking the fast fashion market? Cardi B, Amber Rose and Janet Guzman are still selling Nova Fashion's clothes.
Why do you think people say they care about the environment but still buy fast fashion? Why do people say they care about exploited workers and still buy fast fashion? Why do people say they care about pollution and still buy fast fashion? What will it take to get consumers to reject fast fashion?
Do you buy clothes that last? Do you buy resold clothes? Will you now?
Craven, J. (2021, October 10) I Went A Year Without Shopping For Clothes. Here's What I Learned. huffpost.com. Retrieved October 26, 2021, from https://www.huffpost.com/entry/no-shopping-for-a-year-challenge_n_617088bfe4b0657357366ef7
Schlossberg, T. (2019, September 3) How Fast Fashion Is Destroying The Planet. nytimes.com. Retrieved October 26, 2021, from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/03/books/review/how-fast-fashion-is-destroying-the-planet.html
Kitroeff, N. (2019, December 16) Fashion Nova's Secret: Underpaid Workers in Los Angeles Factories. nytimes.com. Retrieved October 26, 2021, from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/16/business/fashion-nova-underpaid-workers.html?curator=FashionREDEF
5 comments:
What would you do if a decision you made today impacted the future of your livelihood thirty years from now? We live in a world where delayed gratification is minimized. Rather, our human experience is constantly about chasing one gratifying experience after the next: sugar, social media, TV, drugs, sex, alcohol, clothes, makeup, shoes…. The list goes on and on.
The contemporary consumer must have the foresight to question the everyday workings of the capitalistic society we exist it. Jen Craven does a great job at using critical thinking to lean into her values and thus contribute to a world that is more environmentlly friendly.
I believe the decision to not partake in fast fashion begins with the individual, however, change will not occur until large corporations and powerful leaders partake.
I think the percentage of the population that is actually and actively concerned about the environment is very small.
I think price is a major factor in this equation. Environmentally friendly clothing comes at a cost, and usually a very high one. Sustainable fashion is a luxury. When given the option between an environmentally friendly $300 sweater and a $25 Zara knock-off that appears to be identical, the majority of the population would go for the $25 knock-off. Even if they prefer to buy the sustainable fashion, it might not even be an option for them.
On a separate note, it's really hard to find ACTUAL sustainable fashion. I previously worked in the fashion industry for a company that was an award-winning leader in "sustainability" and while their fabrics were environmentally friendly and they had great PR about how "sustainable" they are, many of the other practices they engaged in (like how they shipped their garments and their packaging) were not sustainable and actually incredibly wasteful.
Fast fashion will never die because the price will always attract many customers. Especially when the environmental issues don't affect them personally, that wouldn't be something they genuinely care about. In addition, fast fashion brings a fortune to the clothing retailing industry; manufacturers wouldn't be willing to end the fast fashion industry, and their power in this business is much greater than customers'. According to Statista's data, the fashion industry is expected to grow dramatically in the next ten years. Two categories in the fashion industry of interest are the fast fashion market and the second-hand fashion market. By 2029, the fast fashion market is expected to grow by 20 percent, and for the second-hand market, this number is higher at 185 percent. Fast fashion and 2nd hand fashion seem like a developing trend instead of a dying market, unfortunately.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1237898/fast-and-second-hand-fashion-market-growth-in-the-us/
I think in the climate we are in, everyone wants to be the protagonist of the story. Everyone seem to put a lot of meaning in to words, that they care very little into actions. Actions take a lot more effort, time and money. With that being said, it comes to no surprise people are buying fast-fashion items due to financial reasons. But personally, it is not an appealing answer. What about thrift stores? Do people know you can buy $1 clothings in thrift stores? I dont believe so. This is because thrift stores doesn't benefit the economy, but fast fashion can. Fast fashion allow people to be trendy, because they produce items that "are in-style". And that's what people want: Attention and the need to fit in. So perhaps, the only reason people say they want to be "environmental friendly" is to fit in to the culture/society because currently, it is "trendy" to be environmentally conscious. Actions speaks louder than words.
Instagram influencers like Charly Jordan, Madison Beer even promotes Bohoo. I think the reason behind this partnership is that the fast fashion market is still so big. Even me myself, I am very much concerned about sustainability, but I cannot stop myself buying fast fashion once in a while. Why? The biggest temptation is it’s price. People love to spend you know tenth of money to buy what they think is trendy and elegant. Like I once did research on Zara in my supply chain management class. Customers want the feeling of luxury without paying the full price. Unlike luxury brands which have 4 seasons of clothing, Zara has new collections coming to store every week. Research found that the average American woman is buying 64 pieces of new clothing per year, half of which are worn 3 times or less. The only mass market retailer that can cater to this extreme variety of clothing is H&M or Zara etc. I start buying at Depop and thrift stores much more often now. I take my unworn clothes to a thrift store to sell/exchange for new items. And I only invest in good “quality” clothes that last instead of buying fast fashion for it’s “style”. It will take time to educate generations to generations of course, but I think sustainability should be a mandatory class for worldwide colleges.
Thanks, Kayla
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