Future And Sustainability

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The future seems clear for the fashion industry and consumption. Today, consumers expect to find qualities such as organic or recycled in the products they buy, as well as a guarantee of their environmental, ethical, and sustainable production.    

It is not a question of natural versus chemical because most organic and natural ingredients go through processing and the components of the final product are not in the state in which they exist in nature. What differentiates the eco-industry are the friendly technologies. That said, buying such a product is a step towards more conscious consumer choice. 

Ethics of the Future

Take cosmetics as an example. The core value of natural or organic production is that it strives to be in harmony with nature, including packaging materials. Eco-oriented brands look for innovative technologies, minimizing the use of plastic and relying on recyclable or biodegradable materials. Many brands are certified as cruelty-free. The products and their components exclude testing on animals. Their production does not involve the infliction of pain and suffering.   

The notion of sustainable fashion has emerged, often referred to as eco-fashion. Sustainable fashion has developed as a counterpoint to so-called fast fashion and is gaining more and more followers, especially among the generation born around 2000. Fast fashion is flooding the market with products. Brands, from high-end to low-end, compete to see who will be the first to present new collections, and in the end, quality gives way to quantity. Everyone has over one garment in their wardrobe that they have never worn and will never wear. Fast fashion also comes at an exorbitant price—thousands of tonnes of unworn clothes and textiles are thrown away every year, wasting precious natural resources and increasing the waste dumped into the environment.

Fast Fashion vs. Sustainable Fashion

Unlike fast fashion, sustainable fashion is slow, which means more durable and higher quality clothes. Raw materials for production are borrowed from nature because they can be recycled and reused. The production technologies minimize the waste of fresh water and the disposal of harmful chemicals, and last but not least, they are empathetic to animals. Wearing clothing made of natural fur is not only out of fashion. It is ugly and disgusting! And manufacturers have no choice but to adjust.

Another fashion gaining popularity, especially among the youngest consumers, is buying clothes from thrift stores for high-quality secondhand clothes. Shopping in these stores is not shameful. It is even exciting. You can always come across a treasure—an original designer garment that you can’t otherwise afford. And besides the joy of the priceless item, you can feel happy that you are contributing to the environment, giving new life to the garment, and reducing waste. Internet connectivity is also helping boost the online used clothing trade worldwide. Popular influencers and fashion gurus inspire their followers by promoting this way of shopping. Here comes the future.