Rise of the sustainable shopper: Why fast fashion is on its way out
Claire Rees holding a pair of Jimmy Choos in a charity shop in Cardiff
Climate activists say fast fashion has disastrous consequences on the environment, but recently the number of young people shopping at second-hand clothing stores has been on the rise.
Shopping at charity shops, or being able to tell your friends your new t-shirt is “thrifted” seems to now be far more impressive than any Topshop bag can make you look.
Second-hand clothes stores are doing far better than they’ve ever done, with sustainability at the forefront of many a young shoppers mind.
According to research conducted by the British Heart Foundation two in five people think that being sustainable and thinking about the environment is an important factor when it comes to shopping.
However, it’s still estimated 10,000 items of clothing are sent to landfill every five minutes in the UK.
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A survey conducted by Vice UK has shown that 23% of young people wear things once before throwing them out.
Claire Rees is a stylist from Cardiff- she’s also a journalist who specialises in sustainable fashion. She explained what fast fashion actually is: “Fast fashion is defined as mass manufactured and cheaply made clothes with a trend in mind. We know it’s really problematic - fashion is one of the most polluting industries in the world. Producing it uses a lot of fossil fuels and water!”
She said that it’s easy to dress fashionably and sustainably.
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“You can still dress luxe by wearing second hand, some of my most really special and wow pieces have been from charity and vintage shops! There’s also a lot of slow -fashion people on Instagram now that you can follow for inspiration.”
The fashion industry survives off creating trends- right now it’s working on its most important trend ever: sustainability.
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The young people who are currently up and coming in fashion know the responsibility is sitting firmly on their shoulders. Keira Lane is studying fashion at Cardiff Metropolitan University. She's recently developed a sustainable clothing line called “Who is Jack”, which has received lots of attention from big names in the industry.
Keira said: “It’s a sustainable company because I’m looking at minimising wastage and using all my offcuts.
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"I think all of the fashion students who I now work with have sustainability and environmental impact on their mind. It's something we talk about a lot in lectures."
On average when making a garment of clothing, between 15-30% of material is lost as offcuts.
Many believe that as long as the nation yearns for an increase in the size of their wardrobe, the impact on the environment will continue to grow - but young designers such as Kiera are proving the next generation won’t let this be the case.