I first started
rethinking purchasing from brands of cheap mass production retail (think Zara, H&M....) in the spring of 2017
when I saw David Redmon’s documentary Mardi Gras:
Made in China in class during my exchange in Italy. In the documentary the
author highlighted the negative consequences of globalised trade, especially
focusing on the ethics of mass production. The documentary begins with a scene
depicting western tourists celebrating Mardi Grass and drunkenly flashing their
naked body parts to the crowds in exchange for obtaining shiny plastic bead
necklaces. Moreover, the documentary quickly shows that the beads are treated
as something easily discarded post-festival, with majority of the beads ending
up on the ground or otherwise neglected. When a young woman on the screen is
asked about the origin of the beads, she quickly realizes that she has no clue
and probably hasn't stopped even once to think about the origin of these
necklaces, let alone what goes into producing them. Quickly, the scene
cuts to a small factory room somewhere in rural China, where a young man is
working non-stop melting and infusing plastic beads together by hand. The
effect that the tough and dangerous work has on the viewer is compounded by
the horrible factory owner who proudly boasts to the camera
about the strict and inhumane work regime that he maintains over his employees.
When I see the thousands of beads discarded on the ground in the wake of the
carnival, I can't help but think what happens to all that plastic just left
laying around.
If I reflect on the
reason why the documentary left such a strong impression on me, it's because I
realised that in various aspects I
am that girl. I would buy whatever fashion items were trending at the
moment, offered at super low price points from websites like Missguided, Pretty Little Thing, Zaful
or Zalando, only to discard them
later in the back of my closet to collect dust, as the next best thing would
come around and I would have
to have it. The fashion industry has many times been the subject
of criticism for its means of mass production with claims for exploitation of
workers and the burden on the environment. Especially in the heyday of
social media, influencers and models contribute to the fast pace of changing
trends with their daily new outfit posts. Meanwhile us average mortals 'are
influenced' to try and recreate that instagram closet with whatever income we
have. And the reality is that in today's globalized clothing industry adjusting
your wardrobe to whatever latest fashion whims is possible even with average
means, as cheap materials, and outsourcing of production to developing
countries where there's low regulation on workers' rights and cheap wages
enable cheap prices for a serial shopper such as yours truly. But how often do
we think about the ethics of fashion? What happens to that plastic garment that
is worn out after a few months of use?
Now, I’m sure you
can imagine, as a student “budgetee” and a fashion trend-coaster I was, and
still am, extremely torn between my selfish inclinations to take advantage of
the cheap prices and easily accessible produce to suit my every fashion whim,
and my conscience telling me to stop supporting the consumption economy and to
invest a longer penny into durable ethically produced clothing. I want to
be clear in that in no way do I mean to purport that these shops are all evil
and support an unsustainable lifestyle, or that the only answer is to boycott
all mass produced retail. My point is rather that when making the choice of
purchasing fashion, let's put these questions back into the weighing
equation through education and awareness instead of burying our
consumer heads in the sand.
Moreover, I think
more and more stores are taking responsibility for not only ethics of workers
but also environmental sustainability. For example, recently I saw a sign
in & Other Stories, which encouraged customers to recycle by
offering a discount reward for bringing back the used beauty
containers/packaging.
In some sort of
conclusion, I have since accepted that my fashion dilemma is not a one-decision
battle, but rather a staircase of smaller decisions in every day life and a
willingness to educate myself. I believe that an answer lies somewhere with
consumers collectively demanding more transparency and accountability from the
clothing industry, as well as opting for quality rather than quantity, buying
more second-hand and getting crafty with old clothes.
Here are some cool
links if you are interested:
With high hopes for more
ethical and sustainable fashion industry in the future,
J
