Fashion: A New Truth to Consumerism

We are witnessing a shift towards a more technology based fashion industry. Can we utilise this transition to educate consumers and promote more sustainable lifestyles?

By Cora McLean

Consumerism has had a significant impact on society as a whole and in turn our global built environment. We make consumer choices almost daily, based in part on material reality but also as a result of fantasy. Shopping consequently becomes a powerful tool that equips us with materials to transform both our physical and mental selves, making it integral to the fashion industry.

However, the success of physical clothing stores is dwindling due to technological changes and societal issues. The model for retail environments must therefore change. Rather than simply improving individual features within these environments, could a more holistic approach be adopted in order to address controversial problems within the industry?

Today, affordable clothes inspired by runway styles and global trends can be bought anytime, anywhere with very little effort. This is known as globalised production, where the majority of garment construction has been outsourced to low cost economies with very low wages. As a result, clothing has become a deflationary product and ‘fast fashion’ has emerged, think H&M, Zara, Primark and so on. Here, new styles quickly supersede the old and disposability is encouraged. This is not a sustainable system.

Essentially, we have adopted a linear production process which, amongst other things, has resulted in a lack of consideration for raw materials and does not suit a planet with finite resources. In addition, fast fashion only really caters for big business interest whose custom is essential for factory owners.

With such low cost product, garment factories are forced to squeeze the price at which they sell goods, despite their own increasing expenditure. Therefore working conditions are becoming exceptionally poor and the factories become sweatshops. Surely, there is an alternative.

Aspects of fashion have been transformed by the internet. Online shopping has led to an increase in business-to-consumer selling and customers are often addressed directly by the manufacturer. Theoretically there is no longer a need to go to a physical store in order to purchase goods, especially given the rise of ‘return anything’ culture.

Arguably the change is a result of the increasingly standardised experience that shopping centres currently offer. The need for difference is paramount in today’s society, where an increasing focus on an experience based lifestyle and sustainable consumption is obvious. So how can that change?