What problem are we trying to solve? A. We wish to solve the problem of fashion workers being exploited (child labour, forced labour, underpaid, overwork in sometimes undesirable conditions). We also wish to reduce the wastage in raw material and used products especially in the light of the growth of fast fashion, hence helping the environment. Per tonne of cotton use up xxx tonnes of water, xxx tonnes of chemical fertilizers and herbicides and emits XXX tonnes of carbon. Per tonne of synthetic fabric use up xxx tonnes of crude oil, and emits xxx tonnes of carbon. The processes would use up xxx amount of energy as well. B. Help the people who make the fashion financially, and give them due recognition they do. Help customers who have the conscientiousness to ethical fashion to buy the right products. Help the environment by improving the circulation of second hand fashion and promote the use of sustainable supply chain. Ethical Fashion Q: Why ethical fashion? A: it is unfair to have most of the profit goes to brand owners, while designers and labourers get a small share. It is also unethical to use child and forced labour. Q: Why is it unfair? A: This is against universal value? Q. Why do you care about universal value for this class of people? A. it is the right thing to do Q. What is ethical fashion? A. People: fachion pieces that give a fair return to all the people involve. Use of sustainable material, sustainable supply chain, return/recycle after use or sell as second hand. Can be branded or non-branded; or from individual designers Q. Why would people buy the concept? A. Good design, competitive prices, conscientiousness to people and the environment Q. How to motivate people to buy ethical fashion? A. Create a business model that make buying of ethical fashion easy; make selling second hand garments easy; and contribute to creating more ethical fashion.
Business model alternatives
Buy – Sell a. Buy from vendors, sell to customers a. Hold products by start-up b. Stop ship b. Buy sell with customers
Exchange – in an exchange model, sellers would gain points by sending saleable products and buy products with points. Points can be purchased too.
Research Customers – what is the customer profile? Competition – who else are doing this? Should we work with them or start our own? Promotion – how to build the brand?
KOL
Web advertising
Other advertising
PR and other news Location Selling – UK… Europe? Buying – China? India? Technology What technology to use? Help buyers select products? How? Partnership? Funding? Who else to run this? Delivery and return management? Who runs the logistics? Outsource? Own team?
Is it possible that the fashion designers and workers use the internet platform to sell their fashion pieces on line directly?
With this question in mind, I started to do some research to see if there were similar platforms out there.
I found a website named Etsy, Inc, which is an American e-commerce company focused on handmade or vintage items and craft supplies. These items fall under a wide range of categories, including jewelry, bags, clothing, home decor and furniture, toys, art, as well as craft supplies and tools. All vintage items must be at least 20 years old. The site follows in the tradition of open craft fairs, giving sellers personal storefronts where they list their goods for a fee of US$0.20 per item. (Wikipedia,2021)
I bought 1 small bag charm on Etsy for a test. The
As a buyer, I made the following observations：
The communication between seller and customer is very convenient. By purchasing a key chain, my shopping experience is perfect, even more convenient than on Amazon, and I can tell the store owner my color requirements directly.
It completely eliminates a lot of intermediate expenses in the fashion industry, such as advertising, store and personnel expenses. The cost of buying such a similar key chain, in the fast fashion shop, sells for £20, and the maker can only earn £0.2( according to my previous research). But in this website, it cost me £6.5. the seller have to pay for the website £0.15 per item, £2 for delivery. Excluding material costs, She can earn about £4.
French luxury conglomerate LVMH has announced plans to open a new a global research center dedicated to sustainable and digital luxury on the plateau of Saclay, a suburb south west of Paris best known for nuclear research.
Expected to open in “in 2024/2025,” according to a LVMH release Thursday, the group expects it will “eventually bring together 300 employees and researchers who will work on luxury goods and the protection of the planet.”
The long-term goal is for LVMH “to establish itself at the heart of a particularly rich and dynamic research ecosystem.”
Who are the worst offenders?
Two high-street brands came out on top as the most egregious offenders when it came to flouting guidelines.
H&M – 96% claims flouting UK Competition and Markets Authority’s guidelines.
ASOS – 89% false claims
The report also found that these four brands are the most addicted to fossil fuel-based fibres.
Boohoo – 85% of items contain synthetic fibres
Walmart – 80%
UNIQLO – 79%
Forever 21 – 78%
Of those mentioned, no brand has thus far made a commitment to end the use of fossil-fuel based fibres.
During the sale season, I walked into Zara to see how customers were buying. More than 80% customers were female. Almost every woman is carrying five to ten items of clothing. Including myself.
The design is good, and the price is low, each top cost 19.99 pounds, and bottoms are cost 12.99 after discount, the original price was 29.99 which is also cheap.
Let’s take a look where these clothes made from?
India, Burma, Morocco, Turkey.
How much the fashion makers be paid for making one piece of cloth?
“Workers cut, sew and finish garments locally, a workforce comprised primarily of Latino/a and Chinese immigrants, mostly women. Approximately 85% of garment workers do not earn the minimum wage and are instead paid a piece rate of between 2-6 cents per piece. Most garment workers work 60-70 hour weeks with a take home pay of about $300 dollars. Workers are not paid overtime and toil in unsafe, cramped, dirty, and poorly ventilated factories. They frequently develop physical ailments due to the fast-paced, strenuous requirements of the work, which stem from trying to earn a living wage while being paid mere cents per garment produced.”(Get Informed, 2021)
As we can see the price tag, a worker only can take 0.14–0.43 pounds per piece. This is pure exploitation.
Fast fashion releases 52 seasons of clothes every year, and the design is based on the fashion trend of top brands, coupled with the low price, so consumers can’t resist it.
As a participant of Ethical Fashion Project, when I see the beautiful clothes of 12.99 pounds, I can’t resist them. I even have doubts about whether the business model of fast fashion can be changed.
Bibliography
EITGEIST. 2021. The 15 Worst Fast Fashion Brands to Avoid in 2021 — ZEITGEIST. [online] Available at: <https://wearzeitgeist.com/fashion-sustainability-ethics/worst-fast-fashion-brands-to-avoid> [Accessed 5 July 2021].
(The 15 Worst Fast Fashion Brands to Avoid in 2021 — ZEITGEIST, 2021)
Below, you’ll find the 15 worst fast fashion brands to avoid in 2021. The easiest way to do your part is to stop financially supporting these companies and the problematic WASPs on their executive boards. By continuing to shop with them, you send the message that you value low prices over sustainability and ethics
The easiest way to support sustainable fashion is to stop shopping at unethical clothing companies.
Here are the 15 worst fast fashion brands to avoid in 2021.
Boohoo
British fast fashion brand Boohoo proves that garment worker exploitation can happen anywhere— even in well-developed countries with “fair labor standards.”
Despite regularly offering 50-75% off their already low-priced clothes, Boohoo boasts that they produce their garments in the UK. A 2019 investigation by The Guardian found that the fast fashion brand paid illegally low wages to workers at their Leicester and Manchester factories.
Remember, if a fast fashion brand’s prices sound too good to be true, it’s because they are. It’s impossible to pay your workers a living wage selling $3 tees.
Brandy Melville
Though commonly associated with California WASPs, Brandy Melville began in Italy in the 1980s. The store hit the US in 2009 and has racked up a lengthy list of controversies in the 12 years since.
Brandy Melville targets a specific type of customer— a young, thin, affluent, white teen— through small sizing, a lack of diversity, and exclusionary hiring practices. Most Brandy Melville clothing is sized as one size fits all, yet as many YouTube try-on hauls can prove, fits only sizes 0-4.
Brandy Melville was under fire again in 2020, facing allegations of racism and body-shaming. A former employee has gone viral on TikTok for herReasons Not to Shop at Brandy Melvilleseries, where she roasts her managers for not hiring non-white applicants, using employees for free social media advertising, and body-shaming employees.
In our humble opinion, most Brandy Melville clothes look like they came straight out of a vintage shop. Why not save the planet and wear Zeitgeist vintage instead?
Fashion Nova
In 2019, a New York Times investigation revealed that—despite hiring high-priced celebrity influencers like Kylie Jenner and Cardi B— Fashion Nova was underpaying garment workers at their Los Angeles factories. To make you feel even worse about Made in America products, a Department of Labor investigation found labor violations at 85% of garment factories.
Fashion Nova is one of many fast fashion brands to use influencer marketing, celebrity endorsements, and a strong social media presence to create a false sense of morality and make the aspirational feel attainable.
Forever 21
Forever 21 was one of the first retailers to adopt a fast fashion model. As the demand for affordable, trendy clothing grew, it began to churn out new styles at an alarmingly fast pace. At one point, the company was approving over 400 designs a day.
At its peak in 2015, Forever 21 grossed $4.4 billion in global sales. It became a staple in malls across the US, with over 480 locations nationwide. Despite slapping Bible verses on their bright yellow bags, the company relied on unethical business practices to survive. A US Labor Department investigation found that workers at Forever 21’s LA factories made as little as $4 an hour.
As the fast fashion industry became more competitive, Forever 21 was quickly overshadowed by brands like Zara and H&M, who offered higher-quality, trendier clothing for a similar price. The company filed for bankruptcy in 2019 and closed over 15,000 stores worldwide.
Free People
When most people think of fast fashion, they think of low-priced brands like H&M and Zara. While mid-priced brands like Free People may seem ethical on the surface, they rely on the same unethical business practices as their cheaper competitors.
The boho brand is owned by URBN— a retail giant that also owns Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters. Despite the constant controversy surrounding its founder Richard Hayne, URBN recorded over $1 billion in profits in 2017. (You can find more on Hayne in the Urban Outfitters section below)
Free People has repeatedly been called out for cultural appropriation and stealing independent artist’s designs for their mass-produced products.
Mango
Mango is one of many fast fashion brands that use greenwashing tactics to appear more eco-friendly. Despite the Transparency Pledge, Sustainability Report, Code of Conduct, and Code of Ethics posted on its website, the company lacks clear sustainability commitments and transparency about its garment production.
While their sustainability initiatives— like pledging to use 100% sustainable cotton before 2025— sound great on the surface, they are not enough to counteract their overproduction and excess waste. Mango’s website claims they release a new collection every two weeks and designs 18,000 garments each year. It is impossible to be sustainable and ethical at this rate of production.
Mango has also been linked to the 2013 Rana Plaza factory collapse— the deadliest garment-factory disaster in history. Unlike other fast fashion brands involved, the company reportedly refused to discuss compensation for the families of the 1,134 garment workers who died in the collapse. https://www.youtube.com/embed/I_Ocypt19HE?wmode=opaque&enablejsapi=1
Missguided
UK-based fast fashion brand, Missguided is an online-only retailer that went viral thanks to social media and influencer marketing. The brand uses flashy collabs with stars like Sofia Richie and Stassie Karanikolaou to create hype around their low-quality, low-cost clothing. Thanks to micro-influencers and celebrity endorsements, the company saw a 75% increase in revenue during 2017.
The brand’s about page states, “It’s not just fast fashion – it’s rapid fashion. We drop up to 1000 brand new styles every week, working constantly to bring our babes the freshest pieces, put together in wearable ready-to-go outfits.”
As you may have learned from the #Girlboss book and one-season TV show, Nasty Gal was one of the first successful online vintage shops. Though Nasty Gal started with good intentions, it has changed a lot since its early days. As the company continued to grow online, they began carrying less vintage and more cheap trendy clothing. What once was a way to dress sustainably soon became a fast fashion ruse.
The brand’s website constantly offers deep discounts of 50%-70% off sitewide. This marketing tactic tricks naive young customers into thinking they’re scoring a killer deal on a high-priced item. Nasty Gal’s garments are made using cheap, synthetic materials and are known for their low quality and poor fit.
Clearly, the fast fashion track didn’t turn out well for Nasty Gal. They were bought out Boohoo after filing for bankruptcy in 2016. https://www.youtube.com/embed/cSxNDtOiwRE?wmode=opaque&enablejsapi=1
Pretty Little Thing
Pretty Little Thing is part of the Boohoo Group— a UK-based fashion conglomerate that also owns Boohoo, BoohooMAN, Nasty Gal, and Karen Millen. You’ve probably seen Pretty Little Thing on influencers’ Instagram feeds and YouTube try-on hauls, as the brand relies heavily on social media marketing and celebrity collaborations to mask its unethical business practices.
Pretty Little Thing has a lengthy list of celebrity brand ambassadors, including Hailey Bieber, Little Mix, Ashanti, Kourtney Kardashian, Saweetie, and Ashley Graham.
In 2020, investigations revealed that Pretty Little Thing’s cheap, trendy clothing is made in Leicester sweatshops where workers made less than £4 an hour. One PLT distribution center in Sheffield experienced a large COVID-19 outbreak after failing to use social distancing or require its employees to wear masks. The brand’s market value has dropped by more than a third since the accusations of modern slavery emerged. https://www.youtube.com/embed/UfWtE5Lj1Uc?wmode=opaque&enablejsapi=1
Primark
Primark— an Irish fast fashion retailer with over 380 stores in 13 countries— is another clothing brand linked to the Rana Plaza collapse in 2013. The company agreed to a $9 million settlement with the 2,500 people injured and the families of the 1,134 workers who died.
That same year, multiple SOS messages were found in Primark clothes by the department store’s customers. The notes— one of which was wrapped in a prison identity card— claimed that they were Chinese inmates forced to work 15 hours a day in garment factories. Primark claims the notes were a hoax.
SHEIN
SHEIN is, by far, one of the worst fast fashion brands in 2021. The Chinese-based fast fashion site is known for selling high volumes of trendy clothes at a low price. Unfortunately, the company is known for misleading customers and has been called out online by several fashion YouTubers.
SHEIN shoppers often receive entirely different items than what was pictured, and a SHEIN size large is often compared to the average size small. They’ve also tried selling Islamic prayer mats as decorative rugs and literal swastika necklaces.
As if that wasn’t enough to make you never want to buy from them again, the SHEIN app was banned in India after stealing users’ data.
Topshop
Topshop itself has made a number of errors over the years, but the company’s founder Philip Green has racked up even more.
He has been accused of making racist comments, knowingly using sweatshops, avoiding paying his taxes, draining employees’ pension funds, as well as sexually harassing and bullying staff. Peep the photo of him kissing a very uncomfortable young employee for proof. In 2019, Green was found guilty on four counts of misdemeanor assault for inappropriately touching and spanking a Pilates instructor in Arizona.
Many remember Topshop for being the original collaborator on Beyonce’s athleticwear brand, Ivy Park. After allegations of racism and sexual harassment emerged amidst the #MeToo movement, Beyonce purchased Green’s shares of Ivy Park.
Thankfully, Topshop is struggling financially in 2020. Many fashion experts predict they’re one of the next fast-fashion giants to go under.
Victoria Secret
The Victoria Secret Fashion Show has come under fire over the past few years due to a lack of diversity. It’s known for using thin, predominately white models that promote unrealistic beauty standards. To prepare for the show, Adriana Lima reportedly works out twice per day for months, avoids solid food the week prior to the show, and doesn’t drink water for 12 hours before the show to look slimmer on the runway.
In 2018, the company’s CMO Ed Razek told Vogue that they’d never use a plus-size or transgender model in their show because it wouldn’t sell the fantasy. After two decades in a prime-time slot on network television, the Victoria Secret Fashion Show was officially canceled in 2019.
Nowadays, thanks to brands like Aerie and Savage X Fenty that represent a diverse range of skin tones and body types, Victoria Secret is not the lingerie industry leader it used to be.https://www.youtube.com/embed/D_wuGDOEQJc?wmode=opaque&enablejsapi=1
Urban Outfitters
Richard Hayne, the president and CEO of Urban Outfitters, has a net worth of $1.1 billion, despite his involvement in several controversies. While the Urban Outfitters brand is seemingly inclusive, Hayne has a history of homophobia. In 2012, he donated over $13,000 to the notoriously homophobic senator Rick Santorum.
The company has also been accused of cultural appropriation and stealing designs from independent artists on Etsy. In 2012, the Navajo Nation sued Urban Outfitters for trademark infringement over the company’s line of “tacky and insensitive” products that used the name Navajo name and the tribe’s symbols.
TBH, most of the items at Urban Outfitters look straight out of a vintage store. Instead of supporting their unethical business by wearing their garments, why not support a sustainable fashion brand that’s equally as cute (read: Zeitgeist) instead.
Zara
Zara is perhaps the most well-known fast fashion brand in the world. The Spanish-based fashion giant was a pioneer of the fast fashion industry. The company can take a new design from prototype to sellable inventory in as little as 15 days. Crazy, right?!
They’re also known for knocking off runway designs and boosting sales by making copycat products available sooner than the real thing. Peep the almost identical Balenciaga sneakers below for proof.
Amancio Ortega, the founder of Zara’s parent company Inditex, is the world’s wealthiest clothing retailer. His current net worth is over $66 billion, and there’s a clear reason why. The company uses greenwashing marketing, cheap labor, and unethical business practices to remain an industry leader. Add Pull & Bear, Stradivarius, Bershka, and Oysho to your list of fast fashion brands to avoid, as Inditex owns them too.
ZEITGEIST. 2021. The 15 Worst Fast Fashion Brands to Avoid in 2021 — ZEITGEIST. [online] Available at: <https://wearzeitgeist.com/fashion-sustainability-ethics/worst-fast-fashion-brands-to-avoid> [Accessed 5 July 2021].
I had a discussion about ethical fashion concept with a CSM BA Woman-wear student (Named Chao).
Chao is one of most talent CSM BA woman-wear students, who studied fashion design in Italy for 4 years. He is a designer who has very sharp views and opinions on fashion. He worked with Seli Arku-Korsithis (year’s BA graduates), supported Seli get the winner of the L’Oréal Professionnel Young Talent Award 2021.
The winner of L’Oréal Professionnel Young Talent Award 2021Chao and SeliChao’s worksChao’s Works
I asked Chao whether he knows about ethical fashion?
He said yes.
Then I asked him what is his opinion about ethical fashion?
Chao said he still believe that Fashionable capital tycoons will still put profit first, rather than consideration of sustainable, ethical part in the whole industry. He also said that in his design work, he never thought about the sustainable or ethical part, as a designer, he only wants to create with passion.
I don’t agree with his opinion about the state of the fashion industry. The status quo of unethical in the fashion industry has not changed completely, but it is changing, and if we put the time line in the future of 10- 20 years, I believe the fashion industry is now in the begining of the fashion revolution. The big fashion empires are thinking about how to keep their profit in a sustainable way.
The main trend of the world development is about circular economy, sustainable development, environmental friendly. It is also happening in the whole fashion industry. From consumers to producers， people are more focus on the new concepts.
Talking to young designers has taught me that not everyone cares about Ethical fashion. even a fashion designer.
From designer to consumer, how to encourage people to pay attention on Ethical Fashion? I suddenly realized that education was a crucial step.
So next step, I’m going to talk to someone in fashion education.
To distribute questionnaire to ask the questions about ethical and sustainable fashion.
Result: 39 people took part in the survey. Questionnaire result shows that 70.27% fashion followers are female, 54.05% respondents believe sustainable and ethical fashion is the future of the fashion industry. 74.36% respondents that people should recycle fabrics, 79.49% think there’s a need for fair labor wage, 69.23% support durable, long lasting fabric. 92.31% focus on labor safety, working hours, working conditions.
The survey showed that more and more people are aware of the problems of the fashion industry, such as pollution, cheap labor, child labor, waste clothing damage to the environment. At the same time, more and more people want the fashion industry to change and become more sustainable.
2. What do you think ‘Ethical fashion clothing’ means?
A.Recycled fabrics
B.Fair labor wage
C.Durable, long lasting
D.Labor safety, working hours, working conditions
E.Labor equality
3. Do you think social, environment, and ethical problems impacts the world industry and the whole supply chain?
Yes
No
4. How to encourage more people to know about ethical fashion and support it.
A. Social media, by famous influencer
B. Fashion magazine, TV, web
C. Exhibition/ Art
D. Other _________
5. Do you know any ethical fashion brands? If yes, please write down.
_______________________
6.A lot of big fashion companies are now launching the concept of sustainable fashion or ethical fashion. Do you think they are implementing it or not?
Yes
No
7. How do you think a brand can make consumers truly understand that they are an ethical brand? (Multiple choices)
A. Show the factory interior
B. Transparent supply chain
C.Government legislation to protect the rights and interests of employees
D. A third-party audit report is required
8. What aspects do you consider when you spend money on a piece of clothing?
（Multiple choices）
A. Brand awareness
B. Cost
C. Design/ style color
D. Fabric comfort/quality
9.With the same style, quality, and comfort, would you be willing to spend more money to buy an ethical brand?
Yes
No
10. How much money do you spend on clothes each year?
Some thought about to use TikTok to create a new business model.
How TikTok works:
TikTok has been quick to identify impact marketing as a key part of its branded e-commerce offerings. TikTok recently launched the TikTok Creator Marketplace: an “official platform for brands and creators to collaborate,” where videos from creator partners can easily be promoted as feed ads to raise awareness. This is a good platform to do marketing for Ethical Brands.
What: The subject that I intend to research is about ethical fashion (a part of sustainable fashion). As the topic of ethical fashion is quite big, it can be studied from many different angles which contains the whole supply chain of the fashion industry. After changing research question for many times, I narrowed my research question down to “How to draw attention to labor equity issues in the fashion industry?”
Why:the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory building in Dhaka, Bangladesh took the lives of 1138 people, mostly young women, and injured about 2500, making it the fourth largest industrial disaster in history. This picture is in sharp contrast to the beautiful fashion I usually see. It occurred to me that the fashion industry is, to some extent, an industry built on human blood. I hope more and more people pay attention to the fashion makers’ working environment, salary, working hours, security problems, and other issues behind the glamourous fashion pieces.
How: First step: Researching, attending seminars in UAL, reading, watching YouTube.
I started to understand what people are doing for the change in fashion industry. I discovered that there is a group called Fashion Revolution, which holds many environmental protection activities and promote the concept of sustainable fashion on social media. I need to further research into the seriousness of mistreatment of labor in fashion production.
Second step: introduce intervention through social media and through UAL, the school platform.
First, I want to hold an online campaign named” where my T- shirt comes from?”. The starter posts a single piece of his/her own T-Shirt, tag the clothing brand, and asked: “where my T- shirt comes from”, and also tag 5 friends, ask them to do the same thing, similar to the ice bucket challenge years ago. The purpose of this campaign is to make people think about the story of inequality that might happen behind a T-shirt. In fact, as consumers, we have the right to understand if people are fairly treated in the production of clothing. If tens of thousands of people would join this campaign, it will popularize people’s concern about the fashion manufacturing industry on a large scale and drive change in the fashion industry.
Second, from the school level, with the support of UAL, we can arrange ethical fashion exhibitions and seminars, because UAL is the birthplace of fashion, and future fashion practitioners can get some information about the cruel reality in the fashion supply chain at school and make some change in the future.
What if: if the effort is successful a few things may happen. First, consumers will judge and support a fashion brand by how it treats its fashion makers. It will perhaps force the brands to seriously improve working conditions and equity of laborers. Second, I may continue to explore ethics in the fashion supply chain and help major brands to install effective ethical and sustainabiity conditions in their businesses. If it fails, I would reflect on reasons of failure, and keep on trying.
