Fast fashion has become a common phrase throughout both the industry and society as a whole. But the meaning may not be entirely clear. “Fast fashion” is a term used by fashion retailers to describe inexpensive designs that move quickly from the catwalk to stores to meet new trends. As a result of this trend, the tradition of introducing new fashion lines on a seasonal basis is being challenged. Today, it is not uncommon for fast-fashion retailers to introduce new products multiple times in a single week to stay on-trend. INVESTOPEDIA.
Typically, the fashion industry operates by seasons: autumn (fall), winter, spring and summer. There are two fashion months a year that showcase the trends months before the season they are for. For example, September fashion month will showcase the trends for spring/summer the following year. However, production has drastically increased in recent years which now means that some high street stores are producing new pieces every week in order to keep up with the demand for certain trends; and this is where the problem lies. Some of the worst offenders are the newer, online retailers such as Missguided; who, at the time of writing this, have 2233 items listed under their ‘New In’ section. The mass production of throwaway high street trend replications causes hugely damaging effects to many things, but especially the environment.
How does fast fashion impact the environment?
The first thing I want to bring attention to is the immense size of the fashion industry. On average, the world buys 80 billion items of clothing a year. The fashion industry has a 5.5% annual growth and it estimated to be worth $2.4 trillion, according to the Global Fashion Index. This illustrates the scale of production and waste that leads to the detrimental environmental effects.
A huge consequence of the fast fashion industry is waste. Due to the inexpensive nature of the garments produced, they are seen as throwaway clothing. You buy a dress for a night out, wear it once and throw it away. Or the lack of quality the garments possess means they don’t last and have to be thrown away after a few wears due to holes in the material or stitching undoing. This leads to 2625 kilograms of clothing being burned or landfilled every second! That is enough to fill 1.5 Empire State Buildings EVERY DAY!
However, the most damaging effect is the amount of greenhouse emissions the fashion industry produces. The industry produces these gases from the production and transportation of the billions of garments made every year. The fashion industry is the second biggest polluter in the world, after the oil companies. In fact, the industry produces 5% of the greenhouse gas emissions, that’s equivalent to the entire worldwide aviation industry. The manufacturing process of making these cheaper clothes leads to the production of nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas that is 300 times stronger than carbon dioxide and this is what makes the fashion industry the second biggest polluter.
What does this mean I should do?
I am by no means telling you to never shop again. Fashion is such a key aspect of our society and people’s sense of self. The industry is responsible for so many jobs and many people’s livelihoods. So, all I ask of you is that you are more conscious with your shopping: only buy pieces that you will wear over and over; try and shop from sustainable or more conscious brands (there is a blog post on this coming); donate or sell old clothes rather than throwing them away; and do try and reduce the amount of clothing you buy. I know this is easier said than done but small steps in the right direction will make a lot of difference.
A final, and maybe the most effective, way you can help is to raise awareness. Tell your friends, write blog posts, go to climate strikes, just spread the word. The fashion giants themselves need to change their ways and we have the power to put pressure on them to do so. Some companies are definitely taking steps in the right direction, for example H&M’s conscious collection and Zara’s paper packaging. But there is still a long way to go and we need your help to get there.
Enjoy fashion but also enjoy your planet
Mollie x
The Manhattan Minimalist 