Fashion turning sustainable: it sounds like an impossible goal to reach. Due to the hyper-production of clothes around the world, the gap between the fashion industry and green-practices only appears to grow wider to any onlooker. But if you look closer, you’ll see that countless businesses are trying to adapt to eco-friendly ways of the modern era, and with notable success at that. They are proof that sustainable fashion businesses can make a difference.
The big picture
We are facing quite a predicament. While civilization’s impact on the environment is rearing its ugly head through every aspect of climate, biosphere, and pollution, we cannot seem to stop demanding more goods. To satisfy needs for food, items, and clothes, humanity needs to devise smart ways to keep the industries going with minimal impact on the environment.
In a world where 1% of the richest people own 45% of all wealth, it may seem that fashion is not a primary issue. However, some members of the industry have recognized that certain priorities have to be reassessed due to the abundance of unethical practices.
One of the most glaring ones that come to mind is the exploitation of third world countries where the production of clothes is taking a toll on workers and the environment alike. At the same time, the first world countries are not facing such a magnitude of impact in their immediate environment. What you cannot see won’t hurt you, right? We know where that philosophy leads.
This is why we need to fall back on ethical practices to preserve the environment whenever we can, and ethical fashion is definitely one of the crucial ones.
Ethical fashion
Enter: ethical fashion practices as the most reasonable solution. Implementation of eco-friendly modus-operandi in a variety of fashion business around the globe can make a world of difference. First of all, it is about treating the employees fairly, creating a fair play-field and ethically made clothes in a market that is less about competitiveness and more about health and ecology.
A healthy employee environment that includes long-term opportunities, transparency, fair play, and comfortable conditions sow the seeds of sustainability. A business with a green goal refuses to make deals with sweatshops and decides to create their worker quarters according to regulations. Transparency guarantees that the materials used in the production are appropriate.
Certification matters
This means that a company has to become Fair Trade Certified, which is something that should be featured in its marketing materials, so potential customers can make informed decisions. In addition to this certification, a company can get an eco-friendly seal of quality if it decides to produce GOTS
(Global Organic Textile Standard) certified goods. Their manufacturing process is therefore reliable and especially convenient for people with sensitive skins.
What sustainable brands do
Many smaller brands that deal in athletic clothes and active-wear accessories are going down this route. Their job is to encourage individuals to go out and participate in a range of activities, including obligations and workouts. Naturally, the brand that is looking to embolden people to spend more time outside will also try to contribute to a better, preserved environment by using recycled materials and ethical production. This is part of their evolving goals as a fashion business.
Luckily, many sustainable materials are already in wide use around the world, even long before the emergence of the fashion industry. Linen, cotton, and wool can be considered sustainable if they are ethically produced (Fair Trade Certification guarantees this), or reused (recycled).
One of the most popular materials of the zeitgeist is a sustainably-produced Merino wool, which might be one of the most comfortable and convenient materials that keep your skin dry and ventilated. For these features, it is particularly popular as a material for summer clothes and athletic garments.
Many people consider the fashion industry to be, for lack of a better word, pretentious and elitist, which is, of course, far from the truth. Right now, there is an eclectic range online thrift store out there, and the ones with sustainable goals tend to sell carefully curated items.
One of the crucial parameters that they take into account is eco-friendliness. They deal with what is known as the green process of upcycling, which is defined as a doctrine of reusing goods and materials with a creative flair. This way, you’ll have insanely inventive and original clothes that also stands as an ecological statement of your beliefs.
Conclusion
The capitalist mindset of individuals at the top of the food chain dictates that all lesser businesses are fair game and hardly anything is fair trade. While big names are always looking for a way to conquer the majority of a monopoly, small businesses are the ones on the frontlines, trying to make a difference. These businesses with the most to lose are the ones that are painstakingly turning the ship in the right direction, and the good news is that, as far as history has taught us, behemoths will follow suit sooner or later. After all, public perception is everything.
Sources:
https://newtheory.com/used-vs-new-when-to-choose-new-or-second-hand-products/ https://rockay.com/blog/why-merino-wool-is-the-best/ https://www.treehugger.com/sustainable-fashion/do-you-know-which-fabrics-are-most-sustainable.html https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/sustainable-fashion-blog/upcycling-fashion-textile-waste-live-chat-roundup
