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What Exactly Is Fast Fashion And Why Is It Such A Problem?

Why it's important to know about the clothes you are wearing - by Jessica Bosco
  • 01 Mar 2019
What Exactly Is Fast Fashion And Why Is It Such A Problem?

You may have heard the term fast fashion bandied about recently, especially since Kim Kardashian has just launched a US$10 million lawsuit against fast fashion brand Missguided for using her name and image without permission to advertise their "knock-off" designs. But what exactly is fast fashion? Fast fashion are cheap, trend-driven clothes and accessories that often reference major designers collections or celebrity culture, they are made in high volumes and at low cost which makes them readily available for a fraction of the price of the original. But how does this impact not only the fashion industry but also the consumers and the environment in which we live?

kimkardashian View Profile
3.5m likes - View Post on Instagram
Going through old fitting pics & found this gold look that Kanye made for me for my Miami trip last summer (I went w the neon vibes instead) P.S. fast fashion brands, can you please wait until I wear this in real life before you knock it off? 😂

While clothing started out as something humans wore out of necessity, throughout history they became so much more than that. People quickly realised the power of clothes, whether it be a status symbol or form of self-expression, dating right back to the middle ages and throughout the last century.

However, fashion used to be a slow industry. Designs were drawn, materials were sourced (or often made) and the garments were then created, often by hand. But as time went on, with the industrial revolution and as technology advanced, this made sourcing/creating materials and labour easier, cheaper and faster and by the 1960s and 70s fashion had started to become more accessible – and affordable - to the masses.

Then in the last two decades, with the rise of social media and online shopping, a new fashion industry has been born, and it what has become known as ‘fast fashion’.

RELATED: The Future Is Ethical Fashion

What is Fast Fashion?

With global retailers such as H&M, Topshop and Zara churning out clothes faster than the major designers can send the trends down the runway - and for a fraction of the cost - they opened up fashion to a whole new consumer who could suddenly express their thirst for fashion and the desire to be on trend. While the fashion industry was once an exclusive club, dominated by the elite and the wealthy, these days anyone, anywhere in the world need only lust over a collection as it comes down the runway for mere minutes, before they can shop the look for a fraction of the price.

But at what cost does fast fashion come?

The impact of fast fashion on the planet is immense. And hugely concerning. With the fashion industry reported as the second largest polluter after the oil industry, fast fashion fuels this through the use of cheap and toxic textiles as well as damaging practices along the supply and delivery chains.  

And it’s not just the retailers, it’s us, the consumers too. As quickly as we’re buying the clothes – we’re also throwing them out. No longer is there a mentality of ‘keeping something forever’ but fashion has become disposable, we wear something once (or a handful of times) before discarding it.

ABC's War on Waste reports that according to WWF it takes 2,700 litres of water to make one cotton T-shirt, which is enough for one person to drink for 900 days and us Aussies alone are disposing of 6,000 kilograms of fashion and textile waste every 10 minutes.

Not to mention the ethical cost of fast fashion, the workers making the clothes and along the supply chain, often underpaid and in unsafe working conditions.

RELATED: All Of The Sustainable Fashion Brands You Need To Know 

How to define a fast fashion brand? 

While there are a number of bigger global names we all know who are running the fast fashion race, there are also more and more emerging all the time, so how do you know who they are?

Some telling signs, according to goodonyou.com include: 

  • Thousands of styles, which touch on all the latest trends.
  • Extremely short turnaround time between when a trend or garment is seen on the catwalk, or in celebrity media, and when it hits the shelves.
  • Offshore manufacturing where labour is the cheapest, with the use of workers on low wages without adequate rights or safety, as well as complex supply chains with poor visibility beyond the first tier and of subcontracting.
  • Limited quantity of a particular garment – this is an idea pioneered by Zara.  With new stock arriving in store every few days, shoppers know if they don’t buy something they like they’ll probably miss their chance.
  • Cheap, low-quality materials, where clothes degrade after just a few wears and get thrown away.

Who are the major fast fashion brands?

Global juggernauts such as Zara, H&M and Topshop, UNIQLO and GAP are no doubt running the fast fashion game and have been for some time, the likes of Missguided, Forever 21, Zaful, Boohoo and Fashion Nova have come along and are making fashion faster than ever before.

diet_prada View Profile
42.5k likes - View Post on Instagram
When a Kardashian wears one of your designs, the typical life cycle of the imminent knockoff is fast tracked. In the case of this @jpgaultierofficial dress from his Spring 1996 "Cyberbaba" collection, it likely took a couple weeks (or even less) to produce before it started spilling into dreaded retailers like Pretty Little Thing and smaller clubwear boutiques the world over. At least this one has a somewhat happy ending with Jean-Paul reclaiming the design in his most recent haute couture collection. This time around, the iconic contours were spangled with crystals ✨. * #jpg #jeanpaulgaultier #gaultier #couture #hautecouture #pariscoutureweek #pfw #parisfashionweek #bodycon #1996 #stripes #sheer #kimkardashian #kardashian #kuwtk #prettylittlething #mystique #wiwt #ootd #knockoff #dietprada

But attitudes are changing. 

Thankfully, we’re wising up to the vast impact ‘fast fashion’ has on the environment, and consumers are starting to hold brands accountable for their carbon footprint and how they produce their items. A shift is happening and a movement back to ‘slow fashion’ is on the rise, with more and more consumers questioning, how, where and of what the products they are buying is made – and ensuring those making them are being treated fairly. Despite still having a long way to go, it’s a start.

RELATED: 101 Ideas: Investment Pieces For Your Workwear Wardrobe

What can you do?

Avoid fast fashion brands (or only shop their eco/sustainable/ethical collections), invest your money in brands that are making their clothes in a sustainable and ethical way. Invest in clothes that will last and you will keep wearing season after season.

Get informed! If you want to check what a brand is doing, jump on their website and read what they have to say – or you can download the GoodOnYou APP which allows you to search brands that they have rated based on criteria such as how they treat their workers, the environmental impact and animals and covers both local and international brands – including some of the world’s leading retailers. 

Ethical Clothing Australia provides information on Aussie brands who produce their garments ethically and you can follow Instagram accounts such as Fashion Revolution and  Ethical Fashion AU to stay up to date and informed on the industry.

 

fash_rev View Profile
8,062 likes - View Post on Instagram
Good On You, Emma Watson! @GoodOnYou_app, the app that rates clothing brands for their impact on the environment, labour rights and animal protection, is being supported by actor and activist @EmmaWatson. Emma has been a major ambassador of the ethical fashion movement, since her collaboration with @PeopleTreeUK in 2009 and her Met Gala dress made from recycled plastic bottles in 2016. Along the way, she has exemplified the Fashion Revolution mantra: "Be curious. Find out. Do Something". As a tool that empowers consumers to know more about the clothing they buy, Good on You helps answer not only "Who made my clothes?", but "How?", and "Under what conditions?". Read the full story on our blog, from the link in our Instagram story. #FashionRevolution #WhoMadeMyClothes
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Jessica Bosco
Jessica Bosco
Jessica is marie claire and InStyle's Senior Digital Content Editor reporting on everything from celebrities to breaking news, lifestyle and all things royal (ahem, Meghan and Harry!).

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