5 Reasons To Avoid Fast Fashion

Other than wanting to create clothing I was trying to find in stores for my styling client, one of the main reasons for me starting Cazinc The Label was my loathing for fast fashion, what it does to people and the planet.

Here are some harsh realities:

We buy on impulse:

Around 40 per cent of clothes purchased by women are impulse buys, rather than considered investments to be worn for the long term. This move towards quick-fix shopping is exacerbated by both low prices and the fast turnover of new trends.

We pay an unfair price:

From an average t-shirt costing $14, the retailers cost amount only to $5.67, with $3.69 spent on materials, $1.03 on freight and insurance, $0.65 on factory margins and overheads and $0.18 to the agent, leaving a mere $0.12 for the garment workers’ labour. We should ask ourselves if it is acceptable for clothes to be so cheap.

We are disconnected:

Nearly 67 percent of the world’s clothing exports and 57 per cent of textile exports are produced in developing countries, where labour and environmental laws can be lax, making it difficult to gauge the true cost of clothes we buy fully.

We pollute the environment:

Growing the plant fibres and dyeing and finishing the resulting fabrics require a cocktail of chemicals that contaminate and pollute the environment. An estimated 17-20 per cent of industrial water pollution comes from dyeing and treating textiles for fast fashion

Landfill:

Fast fashion is designed not to last long and ends up in land fill.

What can you do?

Ensure you know to stay away from fast fashion chain stores. Buy quality clothes that you know you can wear for years and that are transeasional and only purchase from sustainable labels.