The Real Cost of Fast Fashion

Fast Fashion: Noun, inexpensive clothing produced rapidly by mass-market retailers in response to the latest trends.

So how did our fashion become so fast… years ago, there were four fashion 'trend seasons' per year, to coincide with the actual seasons. Today we have 52 micro trends a week! Industrialization was the seed of what we have today. The early 1900s saw more garment factories and advancements in sewing technology but the 1960’s really opened the door for the mess that we have today. Young people embraced cheaply made clothing to follow new trends and reject the traditions of older generations. Soon, fashion brands had to find ways to keep up with this increasing demand for affordable clothing, leading to massive textile mills opening across the developing world, which allowed the U.S. and European companies to save millions of dollars by outsourcing their labor. Although it is difficult to pinpoint exactly when and exactly who, it is safe to say things hit a fever pitch in the mid 2000s with the rise of influencer culture.  Marketing has opened up a niche for fast fashion brands, specifically online retailers, to flourish. Fast fashion has democratized luxury trends for everyday shoppers.

“Fast fashion utilizes trend replication, rapid production, and low quality materials in order to bring inexpensive styles to the public."

The spotlight shined on fast fashion when Forever21 filed chapter 11 bankruptcy last year. Most consumers, until then, were blissful in their ignorance. The environmental damage, which the fashion industry continues to create, is in large part due to fast fashion. Brands like Forever21, Zara, H&M, and many others use toxic chemicals, dangerous dyes, and synthetic fabrics that seep into water supplies in foreign countries where the clothing is made and at the home where the clothing is washed. These garments, full of lead, pesticides, and countless other chemicals, almost never break down and spend their entire life releasing these toxic chemicals in the air and water streams. 

Our landfills have towering heaps of the clothing we wore just yesterday. This fastness amounts to millions of tons of CO2 polluting our atmosphere and rising global temperatures. Millions of tons of microplastics and fibers contaminate oceans, freshwaters, and poison the food chain. More than 60% of fabric fibers are now synthetics, derived from fossil fuels. If and when our clothing ends up in a landfill (which about 85% of textile waste in the United States does go to landfills or is incinerated), it will not decay. Yep, that's right...your tossed out clothing will just sit in the landfill. Forever. The production of polyester textiles alone emits about 706 million tons of greenhouse gases a year, and hundreds of gallons of water go into making a cotton garment. The rate at which we’re producing apparel is outright UNsustainable for the environment. 

Fast Fashion Pollution Statistics

• Fast fashion emits 1.2 billion tons of CO2 per year, more than air travel and shipping combined. 

• Fast fashion produces 20% of global wastewater, contaminating rivers, oceans, drinking water and soil. 

• 60% of clothes are made of synthetic materials derived from petrochemicals. These do not decompose, but rather break down into smaller and smaller fragments called microfibers. 

• Discarded clothing made of synthetic polymers can sit in landfills for 200 years.

• IUCN estimates between 0.6-1.7 million tons of microplastic fibers end up in the ocean every year. 

• One garbage truck of clothes is burned every second (2,625 kilograms).

The Good News

Within the past decade, changing consumer attitudes, particularly toward sustainability and corporate transparency, have pushed companies to reevaluate their labor practices and environmental impacts. 66% of shoppers worldwide say they are willing to pay extra for products or services from companies with social or environmental impact commitments.

Are you one of them? A 2019 McKinsey report suggests that there’s greater interest in rented and secondhand clothing and that the resale market has the potential to be bigger than fast fashion in just 10 years.

The power is in YOUR  wallet."We are almost conditioned by the fashion industry to keep buying and buying new things every season.” said Kate Nightingale, founder of the fashion consulting firm Style Psychology. “If brands commit to doing business differently, people will start changing how often they buy. They just need to be given a good enough reason to participate.” The biggest fast fashion brands are moving the needle towards sustainability, but shifting customer opinions have yet to pressure them to completely change their ways. So keep voting with your wallet!

The counter-movement ...SLOW FASHION: thoughtful, intentional, and holistic. It’s also an argument for hitting the brakes on excessive production, overcomplicated supply chains, and mindless consumption. Slow fashion offers slower production schedules, small-batch collections, and zero waste designs while using high-quality materials. Slow fashion brands aim to reduce the textile waste that is clogging our landfills. Instead of chasing trends, these companies utilize enduring styles by creating pieces that are classic and versatile. This gives customers the ability to keep garments for a lifetime.

6 ways to avoid fast fashion

1. Buy from sustainable clothing brands...do some research there are many out there.

2. Don't buy so much stuff. How many tee shirts can you wear at one time? & Do you really need a tank top from every concert you attend?

3. Look for better quality clothing! In the words of Guy Clark “Stuff that works, stuff that lasts, stuff that holds up”  

4. Hit up the thrift shops and charity stores... great finds await you!   

5. Swap or trade clothes with friends. Hand-me-downs aren't just for your little brother anymore :)

6. Rent clothes for special occasions instead of buying something you'll likely never wear again.

Brands that are Doing their Part

Patagonia Wornwear - buy used outdoor clothing gear and trade-in your used Patagonia gear for store credit

Sheep Inc. - creates knitwear made of New Zealand Merino wool that is 100% biodegradable

Alabama Chanin - uses 100% organic cotton fabric, sourced sustainably from seed to fabric— along with repurposed and reclaimed materials.

Girlfriend Collective - women's activewear company with clothing made from recycled plastic bottles along with a recycling program where you can return your used activewear and it will be respun into new fabric.

ThredUp - largest online thrift store where you can purchase high-quality second-hand clothing

All Birds - running and casual shoes made from sustainably sourced materials like merino wool from New Zealand where sheep outnumber humans by six to one, trees that have been approved by the Forest Stewardship Council, and sugarcane which is a renewable resource that relies on rainwater only for irrigation and removes carbon from the atmosphere as it grows.

Madewell - makes basic wardrobe essentials meant to last a lifetime. Their denim recycling program allows their jeans to be repaired if damaged, reused by selling secondhand jeans, and recycled by turning old, unwearable jeans into housing insulation for communities in need.

There is nothing wrong with wanting to buy a new outfit and the fast-fashion prices can seem enticing. But falling into the trap of fast fashion comes at a large cost to the environment. When you choose to purchase a sustainably sourced clothing item, you're increasing the demand for slow and thoughtful fashion, while also purchasing an item that will last you much longer. Think about it: one good quality tee shirt might cost $20, but it's the same as buying 4 cheap $5 tees that will only last you a couple of months before they become dingy and worn out. And, you're helping our precious earth along the way!