New year, new you, new wardrobe. From keeping up with trends to committing to a fitness routine, people are investing in new clothing during this season. But in college, most students struggle to afford their basic needs (3 in 5, according to a study from Temple University). Gas, grocery, and other goods and services have risen in price due to inflation in recent years, and clothing has been no exception to this trend. In fact, 15% of retailers plan to increase prices by 10% or more in 2022. So, when sites like SHEIN and Romwe offer clothes ranging from casual to formal for drastically reduced prices, how can you say no? Truthfully, it’s tempting to have the chance to revamp your wardrobe without throwing away all of your hard-earned cash, but your frugality is probably doing more harm than good.
The fashion industry is the second-biggest polluter globally, beaten only by oil. Fast fashion, where styles taken from the runway are mass-produced and sold for much cheaper, tends to have the biggest impact. The cost of producing this clothing is massive. A single article will require hundreds of gallons of water, and the process of producing and exporting the clothing creates almost 10% of global carbon emissions annually. Beyond that, the huge labor market it creates is far from ethical, especially in underdeveloped countries. An estimated 1 in 6 people globally work in the garment industry, and most of them have no form of workers’ rights or protections. 80% of that labor market is women, only 2% earn a living wage. In short, the women that produce this clothing are overworked, underpaid, and can work in hazardous conditions. What happens to this clothing after it’s made? The majority of it will be thrown away, as the average American generates 82 pounds of textile waste annually, leading to North America producing 9.5 million tons each year. So, is your three-dollar crop top actually worth it?
If one of your new year’s resolutions was to be more conscious of your environmental impact, ditching fast fashion is a great place to start. Fear not, there are other affordable ways to acquire new clothes while reducing your carbon footprint. Here are a couple of things that you can start doing right now.
1: Stop throwing your clothes away:
Unless you’ve worn your clothes to the point where they can’t be worn anymore, chances are you can donate or sell them, so they can be reused. Donating clothes you no longer need to thrift stores or clothing drives ensures that your beloved garments will continue to help people, especially those who are financially insecure. You can even earn cash by selling on or to resellers such as Plato’s Closet, Depop, or Mercari.
2: Stop buying clothes from SHEIN (and Romwe, Target, Walmart, etc.):
It’s tempting to go for the cheapest option you can find, but that’s usually the option that is going to be the worst for people and the planet. Instead of buying into fast fashion, try shopping at thrift stores and resellers, where you can often find brand-name clothes for much more affordable prices. Here in Atlanta, there are local thrift and vintage stores that you can visit to meet all your fashion needs!
3: Shop from sustainable brands:
If you have the resources to shop from sustainable brands, by all means, do so! There are an increasing number of clothing retailers that create clothes in more sustainable ways and have standards for how their employees around the world are treated and paid. Companies like Allbirds, Whimsy + Row, and Reformation have made significant strides in making their clothing both ethically produced and with a greatly reduced carbon footprint.
4: Spread the word:
Nothing changes if nothing changes, and nothing changes if no one knows. So, share this information with your friends, family, peers, and anyone else in your social network. The multifactorial causes of climate change are still something that not many people totally understand, and the only way to change that is through education. If you see someone talking or posting about shopping fast fashion, take a moment to give them some helpful advice on why they should stop and how they can do so.