Fast Fashion- Do Cheap Prices Come At High Costs?

By: A. Lotufo

Shein, Temu, and many other brands have been known for their cheap clothing and for keeping up with fashion trends at an incredibly fast pace. Many people have found their dream clothes in these brands and continue to buy from them. But do their cheap prices come at a high cost? 
Some companies have been accused of underpaying their workers or paying minimum wage. This helps them to produce their garments as cheaply as possible to be able to receive a higher income. 
Fashion has also been proven to have a massive impact on the environment, as it contributes to up to 10% of global carbon emissions. While many say to simply drop fast fashion and move towards sustainable and unique brands (also referred to as slow fashion), there are many issues with this, which may be the reason why these fast fashion brands remain on top. 
The first issue on slow fashion is the pricing. Many people turn to fast fashion for its affordable prices. 
The second issue is the fame it already has – once people see cheap clothing which looks exactly like the latest trend, it is hard to dismantle the hype.  
Continuing the second issue, the amount of people buying from these brands is huge. While scrolling on fast fashion sites, I found that Shein wrote on the site exactly how many users have the item in their cart. These items can have more than 100,000 users keeping them in their cart. This isn’t only for clothes – makeup, accessories and more are also joining fast fashion. 
When going on these sites, their products seem impeccable – as you scroll, you just might happen to see the dress you’ve been eyeing for the past month, the blush you’ve seen all over TikTok and Instagram. Not only that, but cheap prices draw people in, which is yet another power fast fashion has over the population. 
While many people strive to get slow fashion recognized and acknowledged, there are simply too many factors inducing people to buy from fast fashion. So, what can we do to keep our futures greener and get fast fashion to become more sustainable? 
Pushing fast fashion brands to recognize the environment is already a great start. Many brands have started to become more sustainable, and it is possible, through work and effort, that fast fashion brands can do so too. 
Avoiding joining the hype of trendy clothes is also good. As said previously, Fashion is the cause of 10% of the world’s carbon emissions. Buying long lasting clothes that you will not get tired of easily will help stopping clothes going to the trash. 
And lastly, try your best not to throw clothes away. Donating or reselling are great options as well. Thrift stores are becoming more and more visited and is a great way of your unwanted clothes to become someone’s favourite garment. 
Brands like Zara are already trying to reach a more sustainable future. According to many sources, they want to reduce their carbon emissions and use more sustainable energy. This is already a great start. 
Concluding, the main goal we should try to reach isn’t eliminating fast fashion completely, but making it a more sustainable, ethical industry. ​