Old habits die hard: fighting fast-fashion
Despite breakthrough new sustainable materials, greenwashing is making sustainable fashion more inaccessible. Dr Irene Garnelo-Gomez talks about the importance of marketing sustainable fashion well.
What is fast fashion?
Fast fashion refers to clothes that are cheaper and generally of lower quality. Often, people buy more than they need, influenced by trends. Production is fast, the life of the piece of clothing is short. The consequences? The clothing breaks. A replacement will likely be needed - with more water wasted and more pollution created - and the life of that piece of clothing ends. Say goodbye to selling damaged goods or donating it to a charity shop! As a result, thousands of tons of fashion items end up in landfill in the UK every year.
How to reduce fast fashion
There are mainly three solutions to reducing fast fashion:
- People buying less fashion items.
- People buying more second-hand clothes.
- People investing in sustainable brands.
Focussing on the third option, the key is to buy less and of higher quality to ensure things last. Buy clothes that you could use for longer and, in the case of kids clothing, that could be passed onto other children. This was a much more common practice in the past, and some brands are now embracing it again. And if the clothes break, try to repair them or request the brand repair it for you, if that is an option.
Read more to find out more on The new technology fighting fast fashion and Marketing sustainable fashion