Slow fashion and fast fashion, which is the difference?

With the everyday hustle and bustle that affects each of us, we have become accustomed to consuming and buying products that respond instantly to our needs. Information is conveyed instantly through our smartphones, food can be ordered from a fast food restaurant or bought already cooked directly from the supermarket.

Fashion over the years has adapted to these needs and more and more brands are producing clothes that are cheap for the customer but also short-lived, a kind of 'disposable' clothing that is useful for satisfying the instant need but is not destined to last due to the poor quality of the raw materials used.

I want to start precisely from this concept to describe and define fast fashion, before contrasting it with slow fashion which is exactly its opposite.

 

What is fast fashion

Following fashion and current trends is very expensive if you decide to buy catwalk clothes and the fashion market has reacted to this through fast fashion. How has it done this? Simple, by creating garments that emulate the outfits of celebrities and catwalk shows but at a very low cost of production and, consequently, of sale.

On the one hand, the consumer can benefit from this by dressing in the latest fashion, but on the other hand he must be aware of what he is buying. Often garments bought from fast fashion have a very short life span, spoil quickly and are made from cheap materials, so it is not a long-term expense.

I also want to say a few words about the ethics of the creation process of these garments, which have a negative impact on both the environment and labour exploitation. To produce an unlimited amount of clothes necessarily increases the use of plastic, cotton and polyester, three materials that for different reasons damage our ecosystem.

In addition, the need to produce clothes very quickly and at a low cost requires the use of very cheap labour, often from Bangladesh, Cambodia and Indonesia where there are no strict regulations against labour exploitation.

In essence, fast fashion leads to fashionable, cheap and always available clothes but negatively affects the quality of the garments, the ecosystem of our planet and has a bad social impact.

What is slow fashion

Slow fashion is the answer to fast fashion, its exact opposite. Garments are produced using systems that respect the environment by seeking its preservation both in materials and during production.

This is done by using ecological, recycled or otherwise high quality materials, to ensure not only a low environmental impact but also greater durability for those who buy and wear the garments. We are therefore not talking about 'disposable' clothes, but rather about careful purchases that are able to last over time without being excessively damaged.

Even the choice of production factories is made according to precise ethics. Those who create slow fashion garments do not make use of underpaid labour but choose factories that work in countries where labour is paid appropriately and where authoritative labour laws are in force.

 

The growth of slow fashion

In recent years there has been an increase in labels choosing to create their garments following the principles of slow fashion, and this is because consumers are also slowly becoming aware.

The 'hit-and-miss' fashion is slowly losing its power as information about the methods it uses grows. As people become more aware of issues such as the environment or labour exploitation, the number of slow fashion consumers will grow.

This is why I believe that in the future this style of production and sales may be the dominant one, I chose it for an ethical issue that aligns with my personal concept of fashion and also to give my customers the best possible product, and I am happy about that.