Fast Fashion Exposed by Margaret Ashbrook https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx en-us 2023-03-28 18:00:30 UTC 2023-04-21 02:41:56 UTC hello@padlet.com The History of Fast Fashion ma47367 https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2555885703 When we think of the modern-day fashion industry we think of runway models like Bella Hadid and Kendall Jenner. We also think of the fast fashion sector of the industry that the everyday person uses with huge companies such as Shien, Zara, or H&M. Fast fashion was only possible through the invention of the sewing machine by Elias Howe in 1819. The fast fashion industry was built on the sewing machine. They make clothes by hiring poor and vulnerable workers and shoving them in factories with sewing machines and fabric providing the ability to mass produce trendy, cheaply-priced, poorly-made clothes. This way of running a company or fast fashion, a term created by the NYT after ZARA implemented a quick production model, started to boom in the 1990s. As different trends became popular and went away fast fashion was always there providing trendy cheap clothing through the 90s and still now. Big companies worth billions are finally being exposed for their poor treatment of workers and waste of perfectly good materials. Despite these problems, consumers continue to purchase from these companies because they are cheaper and change their products to stay in touch with trends.]]> 2023-04-16 16:55:39 UTC https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2555885703 Text Feature 1 ma47367 https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2555886553 2023-04-16 16:57:18 UTC https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2555886553 The Human Impacts of Fast Fashion ma47367 https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2555905979 When most people think of fast fashion they think of how it is a leading cause of environmental destruction but not only is the environment impacted but also poor and vulnerable workers. These workers (often poor or immigrants) are tricked into these horrific jobs where they slave all day at a sewing machine for 17-hour shifts to make hundreds of garments a day. In one factory, they make a daily base salary of $20, which would then be lowered by $14 if any mistakes were made. Because of these awful conditions and salaries, Shein workers started to write messages asking for help on the backs of tags connected to garments. A Tiktok user posted a video showing the message found on the tag of her clothes which then made others check their tags where others found similar messages. Shein being in a place of exposure and a loss of money then replied saying that the messages were to help the buyer remember to use fabric softener. After their excuse wasn’t seen as valid by former Shein users, the company offered clothing collabs to large influencers such as Niki Demartino in return for disregarding and cutting down the rumors. Due to the dirt on Shien getting out, consumers have started to do a deeper dive into companies before they purchase from them.  ]]> 2023-04-16 17:36:08 UTC https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2555905979 The Environmental Impacts of Fast Fashion ma47367 https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2560141300 Fast fashion is known for being terrible for the environment. The idea of fast fashion is that is a quick way to produce clothes making them cheaper because there are so many products. But what happens when trends die? These companies throw out all their inventory of older less trendy clothes and begin to make new designs that are up to date with the trends. Since these companies mass produce products and have endless stock when they need to get rid of the less trendy clothes millions of garments are thrown into dumpsters and landfills. Retailers want to mass-produce products for as little money as possible. Because these companies don't want to spend money on good quality fabrics/materials, the textiles they use are filled with toxic chemicals. Consequently, it is unsafe for shoppers to wear these clothing items due to the risk of cancer and it is equally as bad when these chemicals are thrown into landfills. Landfills are already unsafe and contain chemicals but now that millions of garments laced with chemicals are being just thrown into them, they are even worse. Since these landfills are charged with chemicals they release more damaging gases and chemicals that majorly affect the surrounding environment.  

]]> 2023-04-19 12:58:27 UTC https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2560141300 Text Feature 2 ma47367 https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2560150728 2023-04-19 13:05:09 UTC https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2560150728 Economic and Political Impacts of Fast Fashion ma47367 https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2562643896 The labor aspect of fast fashion thrives on taking advantage of minorities. The workers these companies hire are often immigrants, those who don't know the language, and poor/homeless people. When these people are hired they are made empty promises, so they agree to work for the company. Due to the fact that these people are a minority and have not outside help, they can be easily shut-down if they try to get out of the awful factory conditions they work in daily. While jobs are being created, the humans are being treated terribly. The apparel industry has been growing at a 4.79% yearly rate since 2011 and has completely boomed ever since the Covid-19 Pandemic as many people began to spend their free time online shopping. As the fashion industry begins to go, so does fast fashion. As a result of the worldwide economy being unstable, laborers in these factories will be paid even less than before. Even with minimum wage it is difficult to take care of yourself let alone family. But, with a salary well below minimum wage it is on the brink of impossible. So on top of all the other problems fast fashion has created, they have tricked people into bad jobs by covering up their schemes by saying they are creating jobs to “help with homelessness. 

]]> 2023-04-21 02:07:41 UTC https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2562643896 Citations ma47367 https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2562646920 Michigan Journal of Economics. 6 Nov. 2022, sites.lsa.umich.edu/mje/2022/11/16/why-does-everyone-pay-for-fast-fashion/. Accessed 30 Mar. 2023.

NewsWeek. 17 June 2022, www.newsweek.com/shein-speaks-out-tiktok-videos-claiming-employees-wrote-help-tags-1717091. Accessed 22 Mar. 2023.

The New York Times. 22 June 2022, www.nytimes.com/2022/06/22/learning/how-fast-fashion-became-faster-and-worse-for-the-earth.html#:~:text=Welcome%20to%20the%20world%20of,became%20cheap%2C%20convenient%20and%20consumable. Accessed 24 Mar. 2023.

NPR. 13 Mar. 2013, www.npr.org/2013/03/13/174199449/fast-fashions-challenge-making-money-with-made-in-the-usa. Accessed 22 Mar. 2023.

NPR. 15 Feb. 2023, www.npr.org/2023/02/15/1157280019/shein-sales-are-slowing-down-is-the-end-near-for-the-fast-fashion-giant. Accessed 22 Mar. 2023.

Panaprium. www.panaprium.com/blogs/i/how-does-fast-fashion-affect-the-economy. Accessed 30 Mar. 2023.

Rajvanshi, Astha. "Shein Is the World's Most Popular Fashion Brand—at a Huge Cost to Us All." Time, 17 Jan. 2023, time.com/6247732/shein-climate-change-labor-fashion/. Accessed 16 Apr. 2023.

SANVT. 9 May 2022, us.sanvt.com/blogs/journal/fast-fashion-explained-meaning-and-history?shpxid=a303e1c9-9aed-4054-972a-a9c588ba44d0. Accessed 24 Mar. 2023.
]]> 2023-04-21 02:10:10 UTC https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2562646920 Solution(s) to Fast Fashion ma47367 https://padlet.com/ma47367/v5wnq1dfwps003nx/wish/2562683408 Despite fast fashion being a seemingly simple problem, the solution will require a lot of work and time. To reach the goal of sustainable fashion, major help will be required. Due to how widespread the fast fashion industry is, a lot of help from around the world will be necessary. There is no single solution to solve the entire problem but there are many smaller solutions to help work toward the goal. A big one is boycotting these brands. While this is easy for some, others who do not have the money to spend may not be able to afford other companies due to how cheap fast fashion clothing is. A way to work around the lack of money is thrifting. Thrifting is a way for others to wear used clothes that the previous owner had no future use for. This solution is sustainable because these fabrics are being reused instead of thrown in landfills. Lastly, by continuing to expose these companies on social media and/or by raising awareness, the fast fashion industry can be at an all-time low and our earth and the people living on it will not have to suffer or be treated as poorly through awful jobs or pollution which are both affects of fast fashion.  

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