The fashion industry contributes 27.2 billion dollars to the national economy, whilst single handedly destroying much more than what it’s positively contributing. As someone who is very passionate about fashion, studies fashion history books and makes clothes, being aware of the frightening impact it has on the planet is a weird and uncomfortable position to be in. Is there an equilibrium between not destroying the planet and exploiting workers whilst simultaneously enjoying fashion even a possibility? Absolutely. I think the root of the problem is how we think of fashion and how uneducated we all are of the detrimental impact of our seemingly harmless impulse purchases and retail therapy we all indulge in. I believe we are all quite hypocritical, me included.

We know fast fashion and overconsumption is bad, but how bad is it really?

In a society obsessed with instant gratification, the fast fashion industry has profited dreadfully. Fast fashion is defined as the production of garments that are cheaply made and churned out by big companies to meet the demand of the consumer, some examples include the obvious ‘SHEIN’ who produce nine thousand plus items a day, at an average price of $5-$15. The purchase of garments from such fast fashion brands results in not only our planet taking a hit, but garment workers who are worked to the bone to meet the demand of the buyer are suffering. Finding a balance is possible, but the way we view fashion needs to change. Fashion and the purchase of garments should not be in exchange for human cost, and the cost of our planet.   

We complain when our hospitality jobs roster us on without a break during our six hour shift but for garment workers a shift to them generally requires them to work fourteen-sixteen hour days, seven days a week to meet the demand of the fast fashion industry for around 3US cents per hour. Not to mention the 160 million children who are forced to work and are getting paid even less because they are not legal adults is somehow an acceptable loophole... This isn’t dramatic to say, this is modern day slavery that somehow is going unnoticed and if noticed, ignored.

I couldn’t fathom this when I first learnt about it, I was shocked at how broken the system was, but Ajar Barber articulates in her book ‘consumed,’ “The system isn’t broken at all. This is how it was built to work and profit of exploitation and destruction of the worlds most marginalised people for the benefit of others” was exactly its purpose. There is no protection or safety-net for the garment workers. A common rebuttal to this destructive issue is people arguing that a job is better than no job, but these countries were thriving without being forced to work for these companies, India was known for its fabric production before it was exploited. The un-comfortability of knowing where your new shirt is coming and who it is coming from should be enough to convince you to stop repurchasing from fast fashion brands and take responsibility by researching the ethics of a brand/company before giving them your money. Collective change is not a strong recommendation anymore, it is desperate. This doesn’t mean you can never buy an item of clothing ever again, but the way we buy and the way we view clothing needs to be severely improved. 

 Company’s simply profit off you buying their items, and they will be saying anything to get you to drag your cursor over to the ‘checkout now’ button. ‘Sustainable fashion range,’ ‘new recycled collection,’ are all prime examples of greenwashing. Greenwashing is a term defined as the disinformation by a company to present an environmentally and ethically conscious public image, this occurs with fast fashion and even higher end brands. We cannot ignore luxury brands, just because the cost of a garment is higher, doesn’t mean the ethical considerations and sustainability of the brand is improved. No one is profiting from these high-end brands except the owner. A key example of greenwashing from a luxury, high-end brand is ‘SKIMS’ which is owned by Kim Kardashian, one of the richest women in the world, with a net worth of 1.8billion USD. ‘SKIMS’ claims on their website that they are not only committed to sustainability but also claim to be ensuring fair wages, safe environments, and healthy working conditions, has now been caught paying her Bangladeshi garment workers $96 a month for 10hour workdays. The billionaire has also not invested a single cent into her garment workers safety, and we are simply buying it? Doing your research and buying from companies that follow through with their large statements claiming to be sustainable and ethical, should be a priority to everyone. 

The way to enjoy fashion whilst not alarmingly contributing to the negative cost of the planet and your morals (hopefully), drop the belief that you can only wear something once, invest in staples and signature pieces that fit your personality (from ethical and sustainable brands.) Clothing is supposed to be worn more than once and is something you love and want to pass down! We need to shift our focus off trend’s and more so on the longevity of our garments. Taking care of your garments, washing them, learning how to fix little holes with a home sewing kit, ensures a longer lifespan of garments which is the most important step in lowering our overconsumption rates. The amount of clothing that gets thrown away each year has doubled in the last 20 years, from 7million to 14million tons.

As individuals feeling like we can’t make an impact as we are only one person is a completely universal feeling, many people will argue that the difference of one person won’t change a thing, but we are all ‘just one person’ but collectively we are the makeup of 7.7 billion people living on a planet that needs us to be more conscious in our day-to-day activities, and starting in the way we shop is doable, and is what we need to be doing.