Why Do People Buy Fast Fashion Even If It's Bad? (2024)

FAQs

Why Do People Buy Fast Fashion Even If It's Bad? ›

People often choose fast fashion due to its affordability, the convenience of buying what's readily available, and the ability to keep up with current trends quickly. These factors make fast fashion appealing despite the broader implications, providing consumers with immediate gratification in their fashion choices.

Fast fashion allows mainstream consumers to purchase a new look at an affordable price. Fast fashion resulted from cheaper, speedier manufacturing and shipping methods, the consumer's appetite for up-to-the-minute styles, and increasing purchasing power—especially among young people.

Fast fashion is widely considered to be low-quality apparel produced rapidly to follow current trends in the industry and sold at rock-bottom prices. Although the monetary cost is low, textile workers and the environment are paying a high price. Fast fashion is cheap because workers are not paid adequately.

This is true and entirely to the point. Fast fashion is accessible to people of lower incomes, and often accessible to people in a range of sizes — two extensive problems in the fashion industry. With fast fashion, people who otherwise might not be able to can express themselves through trends.

In addition to environmental issues, fast fashion garments spark a lot of ethical concerns. They are often made by underpaid workers who are employed for long hours in unsafe conditions and are exposed to harmful chemicals used in textile production.

However, they still produce clothes quickly and in bulk with new stock being added often to their website, and so they should still be considered a big part of the fast fashion problem.

it's affordable & often the only option. Possibly one of the biggest things that pushes people towards fast fashion is that it's affordable and so many of us can only shop from those brands.

Hollister is a popular fashion brand, particularly by teenagers who crave the latest fashion trends. They are definitely fast fashion, as was noted in the spring of 2014 when the media reported that the once-struggling surfing-themed brand changed its sourcing strategies into the fast fashion business model.

However, despite Shein offering a secure shopping experience, it is surrounded by controversy that may make you weigh your purchasing choices. It raises ethical concerns over business practices and labor conditions, while its fast fashion model sparks debate over sustainability and the environmental impact.

SHEIN has become a force to be reckoned with in the fast fashion industry. Founded in 2008 in Nanjing, China, this e-commerce giant has quickly grown to become one of the largest online retailers, offering thousands of trendy clothing items at ridiculously low prices.

Is Target fast fashion? ›

Target. Target is one of the few companies on this list that doesn't exclusively focus on clothing, but its apparel nonetheless falls under the label of fast fashion. Target is an example of a company trying to be sustainable while relying on an unsustainable business model.

“There's a very simple answer to that – Shein is affordable,” said Teju-Adisa Farrar, an independent environmental consultant and researcher, in response to why people in poorer states were searching for Shein.

In conclusion, as a fast-fashion giant, Shein has a long way to go before it can be considered a genuinely sustainable fashion brand. While the company has taken some steps to address its environmental impact and working conditions, significant concerns still need to be addressed.

They aimed for high scale and low margin. Keeping their profit margins comparatively low and transparent, they sell affordable clothes that are cruelty-free, and, wait for it, guilt-free too.

Nike has not yet proven that their supply chain is truly ethical and with repeated claims of Nike's poor working conditions, we have to give the sneaker brand the boot. Though, if we were to look only at Nike sustainability initiatives, we'd say the brand strays far from traditional fast fashion brands.

Once these cheaply made garments are worn a few times, they are often discarded. This leads to an enormous amount of waste generated by the fast fashion industry. In countries like Chile alone, 39,000 metric tons of clothes are dumped each year, contributing to a global waste of 18 million metric tons.

Despite being aware of the environmental and ethical costs of fast fashion, many people are still addicted to buying new clothes. This is because fast fashion is designed to be addictive. Fast fashion brands use a variety of marketing strategies to create a sense of urgency and excitement around their products.

And shoppers, it turns out, love a new look: according to the recent The State of Fashion 2024 report, published by Business of Fashion and McKinsey, 40 percent of US consumers and 26 percent of UK consumers have shopped at fast fashion giants Shein or Temu in the past 12 months.

Fast fashion is on the decline

This is evident when assessing the popular Swedish retailer H&M, which has seen its brand value drop 26 percent, with an overall value of USD 9.4 billion. Meanwhile, Zara's brand value is down 15 percent, worth USD 11 billion.

Forever 21 built its empire on the concept of fast fashion—trendy clothes at reasonable prices. The brand was always up-to-date, offering new inventory that encouraged customers to keep coming back.