Fast fashion: an explainer
£5 dresses, weekly trends, and overflowing wardrobes – fast fashion makes it cheap and easy to keep up. But the true cost isn’t just financial.
What actually is fast fashion?
Fast fashion is the business model behind clothes that are designed, produced, and sold at lightning speed. Think runway-inspired looks landing in high street stores in just weeks. The goal? To keep consumers buying by offering endless new styles at rock-bottom prices.
How’d we get here?
Fashion used to run on two main seasons a year. Advances in supply chains, low-cost overseas labour, and social media-fuelled demand have created a system where clothes are now made quickly and cheaply, instead of by season.
How does the environment come into it?
Overproduction, waste, and pollution. Globally, we buy more than 80 billion pieces of clothing a year and a large portion of that ends up in landfill. The fashion industry is responsible for up to 10% of global carbon emissions and is one of the largest polluters of freshwater, from growing raw material like cotton, through to dying and washing finished products. On top of that, many garment workers face low wages and unsafe working conditions.
What’s being done about it?
Globally, change is happening. This week, France's Senate approved planned changes to its laws regulating ultra-fast fashion, including banning adverts by Chinese companies like Shein. And earlier this year the EU agreed on extended producer responsibility schemes encouraging brands to rethink waste across the supply chain. In the US, a report on textile waste last year was seen as a "wake up call to take bold action", which could include extensive national recycling strategies.
And what can I do?
Change doesn’t mean giving up fashion altogether, it’s about being more intentional.
👖 Buy less, wear more. Rewear, repair, and restyle what you already own.
🛍️ Shop second-hand or vintage – Depop, Vinted, charity shops, and clothing swaps are goldmines.
🧵 Support slow fashion brands that focus on quality, ethics, and sustainability.
Pro tip: the Good On You app allows you to easily check the impact of your favourite fashion brands.