Fast

Fashion 1

Abby Edge

English110

May 2017

The Hidden Side of the Fashion Industry: Fast Fashion

Any shopaholic, like myself, knows that one can never have too many clothes hanging in

the closet. I can spend hours at the mall filing through racks of clothing, modeling in the dressing

rooms, and waiting in long checkout lines. I leave the mall and come home with an unnecessary

amount of clothing that sometimes I do not ever wear. I am not the only one. Teenage girls and

young women have become obsessed with shopping as it is a sign of status. Girls look up to

social media stars on Instagram who are always sporting the latest trends and feel that they need

to be wearing the newest and coolest clothes, too. In order to keep up with the fast pace in trends,

consumers choose to shop at stores like Forever 21, Zara, and H&M, where they, hypothetically,

can leave the store with ten shirts for $100 in 20 minutes. Stores like these make it possible for

consumers to buy an abundance of clothes for a low price. This phenomenon of fast fashion has

been a topic of great interest to me lately as I am majoring in fashion merchandising. I am

learning about the business side of the fashion industry and I feel it is important to be

knowledgeable in all aspects of the industry. I have discovered, however, that there are a lot of

negative consequences that result from the low price points that these fast fashion retailers

market and sell to their consumers.

What is fast fashion? Andrew Brooks defines it in his book, Clothing Poverty, as “a term

coined by retailers to encapsulate how trends move rapidly from the catwalk to the store.

Manufacturing is quick and cheap and consumers can easily take advantage of affordable

collections in shops like Gap, H&M, and Zara, and get involved in certain fashion crazes” (8).
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Forever 21, Zara, and H&M, in my previous example, are examples of fast fashion retailers

where they cheaply manufacture their garments in third world countries. There are companies

such as American Apparel, that manufacture their clothing in the United States. The labor costs

and government regulations force these US based companies to charge a higher price for what

may appear as the same item. It is estimated that only 3% of clothing today is made in the United

States whereas in 1960, it was 95% (Morgan). This shift of manufacturing from the United States

to less developed countries is the heart of the fast fashion problem. Fast fashion has not always

been the norm in the fashion industry; it has only recently become a popular trend. To put this

rapid change in perspective, “the world now consumes about 80 billion new pieces of clothing

every year. This is 400% more than the amount we consumed just two decades ago” (Morgan).

This over consumption of clothing leads to many catastrophic conditions around the world,

primarily in developing nations, where the garments are being produced. There are many global

concerns with the fast fashion business model including the ethical impact on the workforce, the

environmental consequences, the immense power of large retailers, and the unfortunate truth of

second hand clothing.

In order for retailers to keep prices so low, they need to manufacture in third world

countries where production is cheap and quick. Some of these third world countries include

Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, and India. With low cost production comes some appalling

social consequences. The conditions in which these garment workers are trapped is quite

alarming. First of all, the hazardous physical conditions—such as unsafe building structures,

toxic chemical exposure, and worker abuse—are devastating, yet not regulated in most third

world countries. On April 24, 2013, the eight story, Rana Plaza factory building in Bangladesh

collapsed, killing 1,133 people and injuring 2,500 people (Fluence 15). The garment workers in
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this situation knew that the building was unsafe, as they saw cracks in the walls and floor, and

complained to the owners; however, their complaints went unanswered. In order for owners to

maintain their business from large fast fashion retailers, they need to keep their production prices

low. Therefore, they do not have the funds to repair buildings or pay their workers higher wages.

Bangladesh has the world’s lowest minimum wage, where workers are receiving $35-$40 a

month, so a little over $1 a day (Brooks). Minimum wages in third world countries are not

enough to live a fulfilling life. A living wage is defined as, “one which enables workers to meet

their needs for nutritious food and clean water, shelter, clothes, education, health care and

transport, as well as providing a small discretionary income. It should be enough to provide for

the basic needs of workers and their families, to allow them to participate fully in society and

live with dignity” (“What is a Living Wage?”). It is important to notice that discretionary income

means extra income in case of emergencies after spending on necessities. The workers in

Bangladesh are not even receiving enough to be able to feed their family, let alone have a

discretionary income. In fact, they are earning 18% of what would be a proper living wage in

Bangladesh (“What is a Living Wage?”). Despite this ugly statistic, garment workers still suffer

through long hours of work so they can at least make some sort of a living. Not only are the

garment workers receiving an unsubstantial wage, they are doing repetitive work every day while

enduring harsh and stressful treatment from factory owners. Shima Akhter, one of four million

garment workers in Bangladesh, states,

I have formed a union at my work. We submitted a list of demands and the managers

received it. After they received the list, we had an altercation with the managers. After

the altercation, the managers locked the door and along with them, 30-40 staffers

attacked us and beat us up. They used chairs, sticks, scales, and things like scissors to
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beat us up. Mostly they kicked us and punched us and banged our heads of the walls.

They punched us in the chest and abdomen. (Morgan)

This amazing yet disturbing testimony from a young Bangladeshi woman shows just how real

this problem is. It is estimated that over 80% of the workers who experience this type of

treatment are women (Brooks). The western world’s need for cheap clothing causes an

abundance of horrible consequences on garment workers in third world countries.

In addition to the ethical consequences, the fast fashion model takes a tremendous toll on

the environment as well. The clothing industry is the second largest polluter in the world, right

after the oil industry (Sweeny). Glynis Sweeny of EcoWatch claims,

Fashion is a complicated business involving long and varied supply chains of production,

raw material, textile manufacture, clothing construction, shipping, retail, use and

ultimately disposal of the garment.…[The carbon footprint] takes into account not only

obvious pollutants—the pesticides used in cotton farming, the toxic dyes used in

manufacturing and the great amount of waste discarded clothing creates—but also the

extravagant amount of natural resources used in extraction, farming, harvesting,

processing, manufacturing and shipping. (Sweeny)

There are many steps in the cycle of producing clothing that add to the negative impact on the

environment. First of all, cotton—the most popular textile in clothing—uses 1,320 gallons of

water to grow, pick, produce, pack, and ship just a single pound (Brooks 8). The vast amount of

water that is used for cotton has a significant impact on many bodies of water, such as the Aral

Sea, the Indus River, and the Rio Grande, causing them to dry up (Sweeny). Another aspect of

the harmful environmental effects has to do with the dying of garments. Dyes include many

harmful chemicals, such as lead, mercury, arsenic, and more. Not only are these dyes polluting
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the air and local rivers, they are also severely harming the health of factory workers. There have

been increased instances of lung cancer, poisoning, and other respiratory issues in garment

workers (Morgan). Similar to cotton production, a large amount of fresh water—more than half a

trillion—is being used during the dying process (Sweeny). The cycle does not end here. Because

the fashion industry is global, one garment can be put together in several countries before it gets

to the final destination. Every year, 90% of garments are transported by containership and one

containership can generate the same amount of pollutants as 50 million cars. (Sweeny). Thus,

pollution from shipping is more of a detriment to the globe than most people realize. The

disastrous environmental impact continues even after the garment is consumed and then thrown

away. The disposed clothes contribute to the large textile build up in landfills. The chemicals and

toxins in the clothing can leak into groundwater and pollute the air. One can picture mounds and

mounds of old clothing sitting in landfills for years and years. The clothing industry, specifically

the fast fashion industry, clearly leaves a large toxic footprint on our globe.

The massive amount of power that large retailers have over both the factory and the

consumer is another measurable reason why the fast fashion model is such a global detriment.

Andrew Brooks, author of Clothing Poverty, refers to the powerful first world countries as the

“global north” and the developing manufacturing countries the “global south” (Brooks). Large,

wealthy corporations such as H&M and Zara in the global north have the power to control every

aspect of their production that takes place in the global south. Because stores want to keep their

prices down, they have to find factories that are going to manufacture cheaply. If a factory

increases their price, the company can easily switch their manufacturing to a new factory or even

a factory in a different country. In order to stay in business, the factory owners are forced to keep

wages low and substandard working conditions. The business that large companies give to
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manufacturers is necessary for the economy of developing countries. Andrew Morgan, director

of “The True Cost Movie,” states, “The Cambodian government, like other developing countries

governments, are desperate for business that multinational retailers bring. Because of the

constant threat that these brands will relocate to other low cost countries, the government holds

down wages, routinely avoiding the enforcement of local labor laws.” This unfortunate situation

leaves the factory owners with few options and leaves workers trapped in a cycle of poverty. Not

only do these corporations have a large amount of power on the global south, but they actually

have a lot of power over consumers in the global north via advertising and technology.

Advertising is a form of propaganda. Retailers can create certain messages that convince the

consumer to buy their product. They suggest that if they buy their product, they will be happy,

beautiful, and satisfied. The ultimate goal for retailers is to convey, through their advertisements,

that consumption is the solution to any problem. This strategy has clearly worked for retailers as

consumption has boomed over the years. In addition, retailers have become even more powerful

due to technology and the popularity of online shopping. With most online clothing stores, when

a consumer buys something, they need to establish an account. With this account, comes daily

emails of the latest products and sales. Because we now live in a world where people are glued to

their phones and computers, retailers can take advantage of this generational change by

constantly sending out promotional emails. At the tap of a button, consumers can instantly order

all the newest products. Online shopping can become addicting as it is so effortless and simple.

Thus, the power of these large retailers, ironically, spreads not only to the global south but to the

consumers of the global north as well.

With clothing prices so cheap, consumers get into a mindset that clothing is disposable.

Almost as if it were food, a garment can “go bad”, or out of style, after a short period of time and
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the consumer feels they can just throw it away. This mindset, especially with women, is what

drives the fast fashion cycle. In the article “Waste Couture,” a mother, Mayra Diez explains that

“Girls especially are unsustainable when it comes to fashion. They have to have the latest thing,

always. And since it is cheap, you buy more of it. Our closets are full” (qtd. in Claudio). It is

clear that this trend is extremely popular with teenage girls, but it is also becoming popular with

women and men who take advantage of purchasing cheap clothing. Consumers of fast fashion

retailers go against the two main ideas of sustainability; environmental responsibility and social

responsibility. They purchase so much clothing that goes unworn to the point of

overconsumption. Unfortunately, consumers are blind to the horrible effects that their choices

have on the world. Cline points out in her book, Overdressed, that Americans buy 20 billion

garments per year, which is about 64 garments per person (3-5). Overconsumption has become

an accepted lifestyle. Once consumers realize the amount of clothes that they have that they do

not necessarily need or want, they decide to donate them. They bag up all their unwanted or old

clothes and send them off to Goodwill. But are these clothes really going to charity? Not exactly.

Only 20% of clothes people donate actually get donated or resold (Wicker). This statistic is

alarming as most consumers believe that their old clothes are being given to charity. Peta Rivoli

states in the article, “No One Wants Your Old Clothes” that “people like to feel like they are

doing something good, and the problem they run into in a country such as the U.S. is that we do

not have people who need [clothes] on the scale at which we are producing” (qtd. in Wicker).

The reality is that most of the clothes people are donating are simply cheap and bad quality,

leaving no one who wants them. Unfortunately, at this point in the cycle, the excess clothes that

are being disposed can end up in landfills, be recycled, or be shipped back to developing

countries. Some clothes go to Textile recycling factories, such as Trans American Co. This
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company receives 12 million pounds of clothing a year in which they can turn a portion of that

into recycled materials, such as insulation, car seat fillers, etc. (Claudio). However, a good

amount of the clothes are sent to landfills—which takes a great toll on the environment—and

back to third world countries in the global south to be resold. For example, African countries

receive a good amount of the second hand clothes that are unwanted in the United States. This

low quality clothing has taken over their economy to the point that in Uganda, 81% of clothes

that were sold were second-hand (Wicker). Not only are these people getting cheap, unwanted

clothes, but this disrupts the local economies in developing countries. All of the local clothing

makers in a country like Uganda loose a tremendous amount of business because of the second

hand clothing industry. It is clear that the overconsumption of clothes due to fast fashion

manifests negative consequences all the way from production, to consumption, to disposal.

I must concede that without the fast fashion industry, developing countries such as

Bangladesh would have significantly less jobs, specifically for women. Debbie Coulter of the

Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) says that in Bangladesh, the fast fashion industry is crucial to the

economy and to the four million garment workers (Coulter). The Rana Plaza disaster was a

wakeup call for action. The ETI has been taking precautions since then to address factory health

and safety as well as promoting worker rights. Since the incident, 1,600 factories with over 2

million workers have been inspected and if the factory fails to comply, then the brand must

legally stop producing there. As for worker’s rights, the ETI has “delivered 389 training sessions

to 240 workers, trade unions, managers and supervisors in factories employing a total of 8,445

employees” (Coulter). Workers should feel empowered and feel confident and knowledgeable to

voice their concerns to their managers. Although the ETI has made progress, it is insignificant

compared with the enormity of the problem. There were still 30 factory fires in 2015 (Coulter)
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and wages are still too low to sustain a proper lifestyle. I am happy to see that organizations such

as the ETI are taking precautionary measures, but this is not nearly enough to solve the entirety

of the problem.

Clearly, there are an alarming amount of repercussions that come with the fashion

industry. So, is there a solution to this problem? Unfortunately, I do not think there is a long-term

fix. There are minor steps people can take to help; however, based on my research, I do not

believe that this can be solved in the near future. I feel that the fast fashion model is broken as it

is unrealistic for consumers to always shop ethically. Most consumers are not going to examine

the tag of a garment while shopping to see the garments country of origin. Furthermore, they are

not going to research the company to ensure that they manufacture in a socially responsible

factory. It is simply not reasonable. Also, since shopping and purchasing excessive amounts of

clothing have become such an accepted part of our lifestyle, the average consumer is not going to

slow down anytime soon. Fast fashion is such a global concern that it is physically impossible to

change a system that is so widespread. However, awareness might be the key. After extensively

researching this topic, I am more aware when I shop. I rarely shop in stores like Forever 21 and

H&M anymore because I know the reality of how these clothes are made. I believe there are two

alternatives to shopping at fast fashion retailers. However, they would both be costlier for the

consumer. One is to buy higher quality clothing that is more expensive but will last longer.

Another, is to buy from socially responsible brands such as Patagonia and Alternative Apparel,

that promote sustainability. Buying from ethical brands is another step in the right direction;

however, clothing from these brands is expensive, and most people do not see the benefit of

buying expensive clothes, even if they are ethical and sustainable.

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The fast fashion model is detrimental to our globe as it harms garment workers in

developing countries, it degrades the environment, it heightens the power of large retailers, and it

causes overconsumption leading to a tremendous amount unwanted second hand clothes. Having

50 shirts from Forever 21 is simply unnecessary and unsustainable. This overconsumption puts

more pressure on retailers to produce more garments and factories to keep up with this demand.

Andrew Morgan claims that “cutting corners and disregarding safety precautions have been an

accepted part of business in the fast fashion model.” However, these conditions should not be

seen as tolerable. Socially unacceptable conditions and disastrous environmental impacts are just

a few of the many faults of the fast fashion industry. Fast fashion is a very widespread and real

problem that our world faces today. Unfortunately, the majority of Americans solely focus on the

“buy more for less” aspect and are blind to the real cost that fast fashion is having on the world

around us.
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Works Cited

Brooks, Andrew. Clothing Poverty: The Hidden World of Fast Fashion and Second-hand

Clothes. London: Zed, 2015.

Claudio, Luz. "Waste Couture: Environmental Impact of the Clothing Industry."

Environmental Health Perspectives. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences,

Sept. 2007, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1964887/.

Cline, Elizabeth L. Overdressed the Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion. New York,

NY: Portfolio/Penguin, 2013.

Coulter, Debbie. "Fast Fashion Is Crucial to Bangladesh. So What's Changed since the Rana

Plaza Disaster?" Ethical Trading Iniciative, 22 Apr. 2016.

http://www.ethicaltrade.org/blog/fast-fashion-crucial-bangladesh-so-whats-changed-rana-

plaza-disaster.

Fluency, Tessa. "The Fibs of Fast Fashion." Habitat Australia (2014): Academic

OneFile [Gale].

Morgan, Andrew, director. The True Cost Movie. 2015.

Sweeny, Glynis. "Fast Fashion Is the Second Dirtiest Industry in the World, Next to Big Oil."

EcoWatch, 17 Apr. 2017. http://www.ecowatch.com/fast-fashion-is-the-second-dirtiest-

industry-in-the-world-next-to-big--1882083445.html.

"What Is a Living Wage?" Labour Behind the Label. http://labourbehindthelabel.org/.

Wicker, Alden. "No One Wants Your Old." Msn. Microsoft, 3 Sept. 2016.
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http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/no-one-wants-your-old-clothes/ar-

AAim8tF?li=BBnb7Kz#image=1.