Hidden in the seems

It is not unknown that the fashion industry is one of the leading causes of global warming. In fact many people know but our materialistic and capitalist society manages to trick our brain into forgetting these things and impulse buying instead. Major fast fashion companies use various marketing techniques to trick the consumer into buying their products and in my opinion i think this is a problem that needs to be highlighted.

In the past few years, there has been a rise in veganism and animal cruelty awareness, all around the world. This factor has ultimately affected the fashion industry where big companies that are use to use leather, for example, are using the term « vegan » for their own advantage. Companies like Dr. Martens that has been around for many years has jumped onto this trend by introducing « Vegan Leather » products. As much as the word vegan might sound pleasant to hear and might feel good for the conscience, what consumers needs to know is that vegan leather is actually plastic and the process of making it is absolutely horrible. The same goes for people preaching fake fur instead of real fur. Yes I do agree that synthetic alternatives are a lot better morally but the process of making these substitutes is extremely toxic for the environment. All synthetic imitations of natural fibers like Arcylic for wool and polyester for cotton are all petrolium based. In addition, the textile mills that produce these synthetic fibers are always in impoverished countries that already have environmental problems like China or India. Big fashion companies love to jump on trends just because it would be beneficial for them and not necessarily the consumer.

Furthermore, because the fashion industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world, companies undermine their ecological impact on our planet and as consumers of first world countries, we do not see what is actually going on the other side of the planet. Most major fashion companies are vertically integrated, this means that they have complete control over the distribution chain and thus lowers the cost of distribution and allows control over the value chain. Fast fashion companies choose these business models because they insure high amounts of distribution and low cost of manufacturing. Major companies such as H&M, ZARA and Forever 21 also tend to outsource their manufacturing thus going to underdeveloped countries and using the cheap labor costs to their advantage. In my opinion this is absolutely not okay because these multibillion companies make a huge amount of profit whereas their labor in other countries are payed less than the minimum wage of the companies origin country.

For me it is important to understand that most consumers run on what they are said and told to do. « Buy this new thing, it’s not expensive », « Buy this everyone is getting it »… For the past couple of years I have stopped shopping and supporting fast fashion companies because I do not like the feeling that the money i am spending and a shirt that cost 0.40$ to make is being sold for 25.99$ and that my money is going into greedy capitalist , corporate CEO’s that don’t care about anything. I’d always rather pay more for a shirt that i know is better quality, most of the time a better fit and that i know the money i spent is being redistributed correctly. This way of thinking is in my opinion, an important one to adopt when wanting to be a conscious consumer that opposes to capitalistic pressures.