Category: Sustainable Fashion

Name: Mehr Un Nisa Javed 

Date: 17th Feb-2019

Professor: Nimrah Syed 

The reading was divided into the sub headings Introduction, Fashion as practices of assemblage, Practice theory and sustainability and Future Research Directions. This chapter aims to argue that “research into everyday clothing practices can be usefully developed as an approach to understanding sustainable fashion.”Moreover, they’ve also looked at how the day to day clothing of people is sustainable and how it can be further enhanced. It was interesting to see how the author used the example of the denims/ jeans which people own. They don’t replace them really quickly and instead they buy the shirts etc to suit the clothes which they already have. Therefore, this is a sustainable practice. Moreover, the author adds that the choices of the people of what to buy are based upon specifically what they own (what clothes they already have) and what would suit them better according to their culture example, Indian people would prefer to wear more of sarees and the western people would prefer to wear more western clothes such as jeans , skirts etc. Thus, this proves that “fashion does not only exist in the abstract but is also composed precisely of a series of localised practices and interactions at the level of consumption, production, distribution and design.”

If we look at the global impact of the clothing industry we see that we need to rethink about our interaction with out clothing. 

Overall, I would say that the main crux of the reading is that “fashion change does not have as much of a bearing on consumer behaviour as previously thought” (Woodward, 2015). 

Name: Mehr Un Nisa Javed

Date: 17th Feb’2019 (late submission due to late enrollment in the class)

Professor: Nimrah Syed 

Reading Response:

I really liked this article because previously I did not have an idea about what was the difference between slow and fast fashion. Kate Flectcher in vague words describes fast fashion as the one with link to greed, power, speed and slow fashion as the one which is considered not very popular but holds great importance as it focuses more over the quality and the needs of the consumers. She further adds, how the fast fashion has so many cons such as exploitation of natural resources and about. For example, a good is cheaply sold in the market than it definitely shows that they might have cut costs in the factors of production such as labour etc. We should really  support the campaigns against the fast fashion because they are the result of greed and lead to nothing but exploitation. If there is a shift from fast to slow fashion then there would be more focus on the quality of the goods . Moreover, “it allows suppliers to plan orders, predict the numbers of workers needed and invest in the longer term. It gives companies time to build mutually beneficial relationships. No longer will suppliers have to employ temporary or subcontracted workers, or force workers to do excessive overtime to meet unpredictable orders with impossible deadlines. Instead, workers will have secure employment with regular hours and the opportunity for promotion.” This will help to save the rights of the workers and give them better opportunities in life and with that the consumers will also receive high end products for which they wouldn’t have to look for replacements soon. 

Video Response: 

I found the video really interesting as Li Edelkoort speaks about fashion in the 21st century. She believes that with the advancements in the current world fashion has not been able to be at the same level instead it has moved way back. She further adds that, “Fashion is old-fashioned,”. I totally agree with her in this and believe that no doubt fashion system needs a great change to move the society forward.

She puts up various thoughts such as the plagiarism of ideas by the designers, Marketing has taken over, but fashion advertising is obsolete, Low prices are enslaving workers and destroying cultural value, The retail model needs reinventing etc. I also believe that in the past there were some revolutionary designers who did a lot for the fashion industry and were an agent for change however, the designers today just bring out what had already been famous in the past. For example, in my home country Pakistan what designers do is that they just bring again the same type of clothing Line which was popular/ trending at the time of my parents. This clearly shows lack of innovation in the fashion industry.  Moreover, we can see that Edelkoort explains“With this lack of conceptual innovation, the world is losing the idea of fashion.”Therefore, it is very important to have fresh ideas in the fashion industry. 

Woodward discusses how ethnographic research can be used to better understand consumer behavior: how they interact with what’s in their wardrobe (combining pieces) and the reasons behind their actions (why might they choose to buy a piece, if not just following trends?). Ethnography entails embedding oneself into the culture and society of those one is observing over an extended period of time, including contextual research (where one walks around the area, explores the shops, local commute, etc.), as well as in-house interviews. (While I am on the topic, I highly recommend reading The Field Study Handbook by Jan Chipchase). This methodology allows the researcher to closely observe the participants, empathize, and gain an in-depth understanding of their surroundings, which inevitably influence individual’s beliefs, actions, and motivations. 

As a UX researcher, I really appreciate how Woodward uses ethnographic research to produce insights into fashion consumer behavior that I believe would have otherwise gone unnoticed.  Consumer actions need to be contextualized in order to understand the motivations behind their choices, and in understanding the context, we can discover practices of sustainability in the post-sale cycle.  For example, when a consumer decides to mix and match old with new pieces of clothing, they are repurposing pieces they have already bought into a new outfit.  Or, when a consumer decides to wash jeans less frequently and keep them for extended periods of time (without replacing them), they are also acting sustainably, regardless of the intention.  

Woodward summarizes this insight nicely (pg. 134) :

“One of the core problems that is assumed to exist in relationship to fashion and sustainability is that the two cannot co-exist when fashion is defined through novelty. However, when we consider the ways in which people recombine things that they already own, it is apparent that novelty and innovation are not just the sole preserve of the manufacture of new clothing that is then discarded if it no longer of the moment. Fashion is not therefore in contradiction to the long term relationships that people have to clothing.”

Woodward is challenging our definition of fashion and the perception that consumers cannot both be sustainable and fashionable. The sustainability conversation is not limited to design and production; consumers can find ways to make sustainable choices with what is already in their wardrobe.  And in my case, Woodward makes me feel pretty good about keeping my jeans with holes in them and that 15-year-old jacket with obvious wear and tear marks.