The Fashionableness of Plastic

Today’s guest talk focused primarily on the prevalence of plastic in the clothing/fashion industry. The guest lecturer was Heather Kaye, one of the founder of Loop Swimwear. This lecture made me realize the extent of the use of plastic in our clothings, something that I was not aware of beforehand. I think the problem lies with the business models of these stores that rely on fast fashion to make profits. The very nature of fast fashion implies disposability and as long as that exist/promoted, any little changes made to the manufacturing process to make it a bit more sustainable, won’t have any significant impact in the long term. And if the inherent nature of the business problem is the problem, the only way to solve it would be stop being a consumer that contributes to the throw-away society. It’s up to us to minimize the number of purchases we make, thereby forcing stores such as Zara and H&M to change their business models too. And I think people are starting to shift their buying habits as the store Forever 21, which used to be a popular fast fashion store, had to file for bankruptcy in 2019. Essentially, we the consumers  have the power to bring about changes by supporting stores that are sustainable, even though their products may be expensive, which would also mean that we wouldn’t be able to buy as many of it. Only when we shift from a throwaway society to a society that implements circular economy can we have a significant impact on building a sustainable future.