Fast fashion is the rapid production of mass amounts of clothing that provides consumers with the newest trends. This method of producing clothes did not reach its height until the mid 2000s. Prior to fast fashion, clothing designers came out with four seasons a year - winter, spring, summer, and fall. But now that fast fashion has taken over many brands, these brands have 52 “microseasons” meaning that they come out with a new collection every single week, according to The Good Trade’s Audrey Stanton. Consumers buy clothes more often, spend more, and wear the clothes they buy less often. Clothes are coming in and out of trend faster than ever before.
There are many problems with fast fashion: it creates large amounts of waste and it is the culprit of garment workers being exploited. What about the economic impact of fast fashion? “According to the Ellen McArthur Foundation, clothing production approximately has doubled in the last 15 years, driven by a growing middle-class population across the globe and increased per capita sales in developed economies,”according to an article on GreenBiz. It has lead to a huge growth in the apparel industry (average 4.78%) and future growth (5.91% in the next three years), according to Alex Assoune of Panaprium. “In 2011, the global fashion industry size was USD 1,051.66 billion. By 2020, the market should reach USD 1,652.73 billion.” It is true that fashion is good for the economy because of the large amount of consumer spending and in turn profits. However, while the fast fashion industry does employ 300 million individuals around the world and this could be considered good for the economy, this industry is not one to celebrate. Workers are underpaid, and the environment is being hurt. In fact, “The fashion industry is currently responsible for more annual carbon emissions than all international flights and maritime shipping combined. If the industry maintains its course, an increase of 50% in greenhouse gas emissions is expected within a decade,” according to Ngan Le of the Princeton Student Climate Initiative. According to The Pulse Report, tackling the issues that fast fashion causes would lead to a $192 billion overall benefit to the global economy by 2030. “The annual value of clothing discarded prematurely is more than $400 billion.”
It was shocking to learn that the fashion industry is responsible for more carbon emissions than all international flights and maritime shipping combined. I think people are quick to be concerned about climate change but slow to make the changes in their lifestyle that will actually help combat this issue. It is also interesting that people nowadays spend more money on clothes and wear the clothes they buy less often, meaning that if we simply wore the same clothes more often, we would reduce carbon emissions and save our wallets.
I've had this discussion with a lot of my friends who don't purchase fast fashion and I wanted to bring it up in this comment because I do think it's interesting. While fast fashion is harmful for a variety of reasons for laborers working to make these clothes at such a quick rate with little compensation, I do think it's problematic to shame consumers for buying fast fashion especially since slow fashion is absurdly expensive for people who are on a budget. In the US, fashion shifts so quickly that it's just not realistic to buy $100+ items that are supposedly going "out of style" within the year. I'm not saying you villainized consumers or anything I just think it's…
I thought this blog post was great especially because my entire website is about the implications of the fashion industry as a whole. Fast fashion is an increasing issue that attracts millennials, and specifically GEN-Z. I have constantly read about brands such as Shein and Zara who constantly exploit their workers, having detrimental effects on these workers and the environment they are surrounded by. Your use of statistics were extremely helpful because it put the information into perspective as to how terrible fast fashion really is.
I think that this post brings up a really important topic. Most people do not know or understand where their clothes come from and it’s important to understand the exploitation the workers in the fast fashion industry face. The problem is, because fast fashion is so convenient this problem will be very difficult to tackle. Hopefully governments realize how detrimental these working environments are and make positive change.
I also think that an important thing to note in the fast-fashion conversation is the role that one's socio-economic status plays in the consumption of fast fashion. While shopping sustainably is an option, it is not an option for many people who cannot afford to do so because sustainable clothing brands often are accompanied by a hefty price tag. In conversation condemning fast fashion I think its important not to blame consumers, many of whom have no other alternatives, but to blame the corporations who engage in unethical labor practices, and push for our governments to enact proper legislation that ensures corporate legal accountability.