Sustainable Fashion’s Latest Battle - The Style of Young Consumers
When the pandemic hit, like so many others, I found myself with a ton of free time on my hands. Naturally, I dove deep into fashion content online. TikTok hauls and endless Shein scrolls became my go-to distractions. But a few years later, I’ve come to understand the full weight of the fashion industry’s impact—socially, economically, and, especially, environmentally. Research has shown that the fast fashion industry produces way more clothes than it can sell and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions on par with countries like France, Germany, and the UK combined.
The problem? Sustainable fashion is still too expensive for many young people. We—Gen Z and Millennials—definitely care about sustainability, but most of us don’t fully understand the consequences of fast fashion. And we're targeted by the industry because we tend to shop impulsively. The rise of online shopping, where we buy clothes without trying them on, is another culprit. If something doesn’t fit or isn’t quite right, it’s often just thrown away.
And let’s not forget the way fast fashion brands market to us. These companies know exactly how to push our buttons, using ads that make us forget about the environmental and ethical impacts of our purchases. Did you know that, on average, we buy 60% more clothes than we did 15 years ago—but keep them for half as long? To make matters worse, many brands use “greenwashing” to trick us into thinking their clothes are eco-friendly when they’re not. All these things together have really messed with our expectations around fashion.
Take the backlash Chappell Roan faced after releasing her concert merch. Specifically, her Pink Pony Club T-shirt, priced at $40, was criticized despite the fact that it was made with 100% reclaimed cotton, paid fair wages to workers, and used non-virgin materials. The drama around her merch shows how warped our expectations have become. We’ve forgotten what ethical and sustainable fashion actually costs. So, when we see a price tag that’s a little higher than what we’re used to, it feels like “too much.” But in reality, it’s not about the shirt being overpriced; it’s about the fast fashion world lowering our standards.
So, what can we do about it? First, we can make more informed choices. Research the environmental costs behind the clothes you buy and look for brands that cater to younger consumers while keeping sustainability in mind. I love finding smaller, local brands or second-hand shops. For example, I’m a big fan of Flirt Club (@shopflirtclub) for cute going-out tops and Montreal Street Collective for jackets and sweaters in Kingston.
At the end of the day, we have power as consumers. How we use that power will shape the future of fashion. Let’s be the generation that drives real change.