DAILY TRIFECTA(+1): Hitting The Brakes On Fast Fashion
Beep-Beep
THE SET-UP: Fast fashion epitomizes the smarmy “innovation” of this “age” or “era” … that is, if we even want to dignify it with the term “age” or “era.”
Maybe it’s more like an “episode” or a fugue state … or a psychic break?
Whatever it is, it’s driven by “Big Tech.” And like Big Tech, fast fashion grew suddenly by disrupting an existing market. Also like Big Tech, it moves really fast and it breaks things. It relies upon the almost immediate, Apple iPhone-like obsolescence of its product—both stylistically and qualitatively. The sooner a garment’s fashionability fades or its fibers fail, the sooner the shopper returns to the web for another “retail therapy” dopamine hit. It becomes an addiction as trend-chasing shoppers jump on another “high tech” hamster wheel that’s algorithmically calibrated to keep them on track for the next shipment … much like the way we might chase a full house in video poker or likes on social media.
And like the smart phones that replaced archaic brick-and-mortar clothing stores, fast fashion’s profitability depends upon cheap labor in countries with lax regulations. For the purveyors of fast fashion—like industry leader Shein—that has translated into market domination. But fast fashion’s indifference to suffering and its mind-numbing wastefulness are also generating a backlash. As you’ll see below, Shein is finding it hard to “go public,” and ethically-minded consumers are, as noted by Fibre2Fashion, seeking out clothing that is quite literally the opposite of fast fashion:
The growing popularity of secondhand clothing has given rise to numerous thrift stores, consignment shops, and online platforms dedicated to secondhand fashion. Apps like Depop, Poshmark, and ThredUp have made it easier than ever to buy and sell secondhand clothing, reaching a wider audience and making secondhand fashion mainstream.
Thrift stores have also become treasure troves for fashion enthusiasts looking for unique, vintage pieces. The thrill of finding a one-of-a-kind item at a fraction of the original price has made thrifting an exciting experience for many.
Moreover, big brands are joining the movement by launching their own resale programmes. For example, Patagonia and Levi’s have introduced initiatives where customers can return their old clothes for store credit, which the brands then resell at discounted prices. This trend shows that even established brands recognise the demand for sustainable options.
Thrifting seems unlikely to “disrupt” an industry that produces an “estimated 92 million tons of waste” annually. But it could make a dent in the 39k tons of discarded clothing we’re piling up in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile every year. That pile has turned into a man-made a mountain that’s “visible from space.” If nothing else, it’ll stand as a monument to this “era” or “age” … kinda like our version of the Great Pyramid at Giza.
Sadly, future generations (if there are future generations) will know exactly how and why we built it. - jp
TITLE: Bangladesh must move from ‘fast fashion’ to ‘defashion’ to improve human & ecological wellbeing
https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/bangladesh-must-move-from-fast-fashion-to-defashion-to-improve-human-ecological-wellbeing-commentary/
EXCERPTS: The Shitalakhya River used to be described as the jewel of the fisherfolks, due to the abundant fish populations in its clear stream. Shitalakhya was not only rich in biodiversity, but it connected cultures across the globe, as colourful sailboats from across the globe use to come to the shores of Dhaka upon this beautiful river. After the influx of ready-made garment (RMG) factories in Savar and Gazipur, though, it was transformed into real estate developments and dumping ground for industrial waste, sewage, and municipality waste. The traditional fisherfolks and farmers had lost their livelihoods, were dispossessed of their lands and became a commodity themselves, that of cheap labor.
In my recent visit to the fisherfolk community far away from Dhaka, at the most significant confluence of Meghna Basin (one of the largest river basins in the world), the fisherfolks were disappointed by low fish availability in the river, mainly due to the increased hazardous waste in the river coming from the cities. These harsh realities are narrated in the popular media as a ‘development miracle,’ as the farmers and fisherfolks (who were called by a local pejorative, ‘Chasha Bhusha,’ which means menial farmer) were ‘civilized’ by working in the factories. A visit to the slums of the RMG workers tells an entirely different story, one that is a far cry from the previous description of households in the riverine communities in the past with silos full of paddy rice, ponds full of fish, and cattle sheds full of cows. The slums where the RMG workers live are usually located near dumping sites, or places where pitch-dark, smelly, foul water flows downward from the city.
The RMG factories are powering the fast fashion industry in the Global North: Bangladesh’s export of RMG in 2023 was $47.38 billion and 84.58% of total export receipts. The fast fashion industries cause one misery after another at the ground level, though, from depleting groundwater tables by 2-3 meters per year to polluting the lifeline (the four rivers Burigonga, Shitalakhya, Dholeshori and Turag) of Dhaka with heavily toxic industrial waste. Neither the global fashion brands nor the local RMG factories are held accountable for this devastation of the local ecosystem.
The Global North is draining poor countries like Bangladesh via net appropriation through low wages and ecosystem destruction. It is generating extraordinary levels of debt from climatic impacts to ecological breakdown. That, in turn, forces the Bangladeshi Government to subsidize and support the RMG industries.
The nation’s newly sworn Chief Adviser of Interim Government, Nobel Laureate & Professor Muhammad Yunus, recently advocated for a more just economy and steering away from hyper-consumption and the drive for profit maximization at the COP29 conference in Baku, Azerbaijan. Professor Yunus’s reform-oriented interim government must also take concrete steps to materialize actions that can set this transformative journey into motion.
The complete delinking of the RMG industry and the economy from foreign capital is a tall order, but we need to start somewhere.
TITLE: What Does a Sustainable Future Look Like for the Fashion Industry?
https://www.thefashionlaw.com/what-does-a-sustainable-future-look-like-for-the-fashion-industry/
EXCERPTS: In today’s world, instant gratification holds power over purchasing behavior and consumers have become accustomed to having inexpensive clothing rapidly produced and made available. The fast fashion business model (and the ultra-fast fashion model) is highly profitable and fueled, in large part, by the constant rotation of new trends within the industry. The concept of fast fashion and the increasing array of brands that operate in accordance with this model promotes – and normalizes – the concept of “disposable” fashion. All the while, textile workers and the environment are paying a high price in order to maintain these low costs for the consumer.
A recent report from Stand emphasizes the mountains still to be climbed to make the fashion industry more sustainable. Out of 14 major brands identified within the fashion industry, only four are set to cut greenhouse emissions by the amount needed to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius. Despite the increasing focus on sustainable fashion, the industry does not appear to be on track to meet its climate targets for 2024.
Green technologies and solutions are emerging and being adopted within the industry, and this is significant, as innovation is key to scaling up the sustainable production of clothing and it takes place in many forms. From creative methods that aim to make design and manufacture more efficient through to creating new materials that are themselves sustainable.
Meanwhile, the linear mindset introduced by fast fashion encourages companies to be continuously predicting what their customers will want, leading to repeated overproduction of products using outdated manufacturing techniques.
While this linear approach may be cheap and convenient, it promotes material scarcity, climate change, natural resource depletion, and waste creation, thereby, contributing to the key challenges faced within the industry. Against this background, global textile production doubled between 2000 and 2015, and the consumption of clothing and footwear is now expected to double by 2030. The clothing produced is often used for a short period before being discarded as waste and typically placed in a landfill or alternatively, it is incinerated. One of the driving forces behind this trend is, of course, the rise of fast fashion, a relatively new phenomenon that has escalated the linear approach of producing apparel and accessories.
According to a report from the European Environment Agency, the amount of used textiles exported from the EU has tripled over the past two decades. Yet, it is estimated that 10 percent to 45 percent of all clothes are never even sold to begin with. The overproduction, overconsumption, and ruination of unsold or returned clothing needs to be addressed.
As the industry strives to become more sustainable, being able to market a brand as ‘eco-friendly’ brings significant commercial benefits. However, the commitment must be sincere and well executed if accusations of “greenwashing” are to be avoided. The textile supply chain must take accountability to reduce its environmental impact. It is important to promote transparency and honesty among brands and suppliers as the landscape evolves.
TITLE: Shein Declines to Comment on Supply Chain After a Bruising Hearing in U.K. Parliament
https://wwd.com/business-news/government-trade/shein-declines-comment-supply-chain-after-bruising-hearing-uk-parliament-1236796057/
EXCERPTS: Shein, one of the world’s largest fast-fashion retailers, has remained tight-lipped about the use of Xinjiang cotton and alleged forced labor and child labor in its supply chain following a bruising parliamentary hearing earlier this week.
During a hearing with the U.K. Parliament’s Business and Trade Committee, Shein refused to answer a series of tough questions about its sourcing and labor practices, igniting the anger of parliamentarians.
Shein was one of a number of companies, including Tesco, McDonald’s and the Pinduoduo-backed fast-fashion giant Temu, who were asked to update members of parliament about how they treat their workers.
But all eyes were on Shein, which is hoping to list on the London Stock Exchange later this year pending regulatory approval.
Yinan Zhu, Shein’s general counsel for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, dodged a string of sensitive questions during the hearing, prompting one committee member, the Lib Dem MP Charlie Maynard, to accuse her of “willful ignorance” and describe her testimony as “very unhelpful.”
Asked repeatedly if Shein uses cotton supplied from China, Zhu said: “For detailed operational information and other aspects, I am not able to assist. I will have to write back to the committee afterwards.”
Xinjiang cotton has been at the center of a geopolitical battle between China and the West since the U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued a ban on goods sourced from the region in 2021.
Beijing has denied any abuses in the region and has punished those who issued public comments regarding alleged forced labor in Xinjiang.
While Shein is headquartered in Singapore, the majority of its operations sit within China. Over the years, Shein has been accused of skirting U.S. tariffs, employing forced laborers in China, illegally using Xinjiang cotton in its products, and copying others’ designs, all of which it denies.
In its bid to seek a public listing in London, the company has been trying to show that it is an ethical operator.
Shein had originally tried to list on the New York Stock Exchange, but its bid was blocked by U.S. lawmakers in 2023. It later pivoted to London, where its request still needs to be approved by U.K. and Chinese regulators.
TITLE: Group calls out 'shameful partnership' between fast fashion giant and public officials: 'A firm and collective response is necessary'
https://www.thecooldown.com/green-business/shein-former-french-ministers-fast-fashion/
EXCERPTS: The women's ready-to-wear federation in France criticized former French ministers for joining forces … with Shein because of the fashion brand's harmful social and environmental impacts.
As Women's Wear Daily reported, La Fédération Française du Prêt à Porter Féminin is skeptical about Shein's strategic approach to social responsibility.
The federation strongly opposes former political leaders supporting Shein and says that the brand threatens the economy, jobs, and the environment.
It stated, "This alignment demonstrates a clear attempt at greenwashing by this company, which is flooding the market with poor quality clothing and lobbying aimed at curbing ongoing legislative efforts."
Partnerships between fast-fashion companies and people with political influence have the potential to influence legislation and help these brands become even larger and more profitable. By aligning themselves with influential leaders, fast-fashion companies can continue to grow, generating more waste and pollution while promoting unsustainable shopping habits.
"We cannot let the interests of companies like Shein trample the efforts of an entire industry to adopt responsible practices," said Yann Rivoallan, president of the federation. "These shameful partnerships between politicians and a destructive giant must not influence our common future."