BP #3

Over the past couple of years, fashion has managed to downgrade in quality, become faster, cheaper, and along with products becoming cheaper, the notion has been created that clothes are more disposable. As stated by Elizabeth Cline in Overdressed, “We are more likely to dispose of cheaper, mass-produced fashion garments than pricier ones”. With that being said fast fashion is hurting the environment. While watching the “True Cost” we learned that one out of every ten items of clothing was donated and the rest ends up in landfills or developing countries. We think the reason we are at this point is because of the mass expansion of stores like H&M and Forever 21 throughout malls in the US. In the last year alone H&M opened 427 new stores, and Forever 21 announced that they planned on doubling the amount of stores they currently have. Easy access to these stores and others, promote consumerism and this is where the problem origins from. We feel the only way to reverse mass expansion without affecting capitalism is through celebrity/media influence, due to the psychological impact it carries for the trend cycle.  

In the recent uproar of fashion media, bloggers, fast fashion platforms, etc- Fashion has become almost- easy. Through media, we are constantly almost bombarded with new trends almost daily. From celebrities to influencers, everyone has this trend and Fast Fashion retailers have been it possible for literally anyone to get their hands on it- thus creating a cycle of vicious fashion consumerism. The psychology of it is pretty simple. We may have a closet full of perfectly capable clothes that can sustain us, but the power of media platforms convince us that what we have is old-fashioned and not needed. We may buy a shirt one week, but with how fashion the trends are changing, that one shirt to us will become something of the past, something everyone already has and we must chase after the new. It’s a little disheartening, but it’s easy for us to fall into the concept because of the importance of image in society today. You can be fashionable without giving into this psychological innuendo, but it is quite difficult since a majority of people are giving themselves in to every trend that trickles into the industry. To illustrate the speed of how a trend goes through a cycle of “I need this now” to- “it’s basic”, I’ve created a visual that represents how we go through trends so quickly.

*top point in cycle is supposed to say fast fashion

We think, if we break from this cycle- and focus more on quality and the use of the clothing we buy, it can make a difference. We have become so indicated on what’s new and what’s in trend, that a majority of consumers have forgotten what the art of apparel and clothing really is.  Cline mentions this, In her quote “Clothes could have more meaning and longevity if we think less about owning the latest or cheapest thing and develop more of a relationship with the things we wear. Building a wardrobe over time, saving up and investing in well made-pieces, obsessed over the perfect hem luxuriating in fabrics, and patching and altering our clothes are old fashioned habits. But they’re also deeply satisfying.” What we learned from all this was, that if the top medias started promoting this concept, there would be less consumerism and fashion waste.

REFERENCES:

Cline, E. L. (2013). Overdressed: the shockingly high cost of cheap fashion. New York: Portfolio/Penguin.