How to be a Sustainable Shopper
By Ashley Yip, WEN guest blogger
Central to WEN’s mission is creating opportunities for hands-on learning about a variety of sustainability topics. We recently hosted a clothing swap, in an effort to provide a tangible option for folks to combat fast fashion while also refreshing their wardrobe. This post dives even deeper into fast fashion and explores both the global impacts of the current state of the fashion industry and also how each individual can cultivate a sustainable closet.
“Buy less. Choose Well. Make it Last.” – Vivienne Westwood
There is no shortage of ways to buy a pair of jeans today. You could saunter into your local mall, shop on TikTok, or even swipe up on your friend’s Instagram story. With the rise of online shopping, fashion trends are emerging (and dying) more quickly than ever. The world consumes approximately 80 billion pieces of clothing every year, a 400% increase from two decades ago. Shein, a prominent online clothing brand, adds an average of 6,000 new items to its site every day just to keep up with consumer demand. As we participate in Black Fridays and tap into Instagram Shop links, we tend to forget the complex and interwoven supply chain that produces the outfits we adorn everyday.
According to a World Resources Institute report in 2021, the fashion industry contributes to 2-8% of global carbon emissions. This is more than all of international flights and maritime shipping combined. Additionally, our collective washing of clothing contributes to 35% of ocean microplastics, and the fashion industry is responsible for 20% of all industrial wastewater.
In several manufacturing nations, including Bangladesh, China, and India, the minimum wage only covers half to a fifth of what a family needs to make ends meet. In 2013, a clothing factory building supplying brands like Zara and Walmart collapsed despite warnings of its dangers, killing more than a thousand people and injuring thousands more. Management had threatened to withhold workers’ pays if they did not come to work despite emerging cracks in the building’s walls.
How can we help?
While exploitation in the fashion industry remains systemically prevalent, there are several ways that we can do our part as consumers.
“Demand quality not just in the products you buy, but in the life of the person who made it.”
– Orsola de Castro, pioneer and leader in sustainable fashion
Shop in Your Own Closet!
Before shopping, ask yourself if you need to! Do I really need a new dress for this date, or can I wear one that I have in the back of my closet that I’ve forgotten about? Do I really need this new crop top, or did I impulsively click on a random TikTok’s shop link? Do I really need these wide-legged sweatpants with a ragged hem…or can I hem my cuffed ones myself?
Social media and the internet are set up to increase our exposure to advertisements and our connectivity to brands. Hence online shopping can be incredibly enticing and has become a seamless process. But it is imperative that we evaluate our need for new items!
On top of reusing what we already have, we can also repurpose our clothes. You can turn a bandana into a top, a pair of old jeans into jorts, and an old graphic tee into a cute new crop top — all with a simple pair of scissors.
You can also repair your pre-loved clothing with a simple thread and needle!
Shop Pre-Loved
To start, thrift stores are a fantastic way to be economical! Shopping for pre-loved clothing also allows you to give donated clothes a second chance before they end up in landfills. By shopping pre-loved, you can not only find high-quality goods at low prices but also curate a one-of-a-kind wardrobe.
Goodwill, Salvation Army, and 2nd Street are popular options for thrifting. There has also been an increase in the number of local thrift stores in the Bay Area — take a walk down streets like Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco and Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley/ Oakland!
If you are more of an online shopper, websites like ThredUp, Poshmark, and Depop are great options. You can filter, sort, and search like on any other online shopping site.
Before pulling out your wallet, you could gather some of your own pre-loved clothing and head to a clothes swap! Like the WEN held in April 2024, there are plenty of regular and pop-up clothing swaps around the Bay Area. A quick Google search for Eventbrite events and Facebook events can lead you in the right direction.
Lastly, you can ask family and friends if you could borrow their clothing instead of buying a new item.
Support Sustainable and Local Brands
Shopping locally can create more traceability and accountability. Furthermore, it helps support local designers, businesses, and the local economy. It can help to look into a brand’s sustainability initiatives and commitments on its website, and do a quick Google search on any sustainability-related controversies.
Even a local brand can have a complex supply chain that stretches far beyond its geography. It could outsource production to cheaper facilities in countries like Bangladesh, and source its dye from synthetic alternatives that damage the environment. There are many stages of production and many products that go into a single garment. Because of this, brands can produce misleading information on the impact of their operations, either by masking certain stages of production or choosing to publish certain data.
Websites like Good On You and Ethical Consumer can be a starting point for your research. They have analysts that evaluate brand supply chains and produce information that can be helpful in your decision-making process.
Re-Distribute Clothes
A closet clean-out is never a bad idea. If you are hoping to upgrade your closet and need a refresh, consider donating clothes you no longer need! Here are some options for where your clothes can go:
- Clothing drives and donation centers in the Bay Area
- Goodwill
- Salvation Army
- Bay Area Donations
- Community Thrift
- Urban University
- Bambino Thrift Shop
- Dress for Success, or
- St. Anthony’s.
- Sell your clothes at a thrift store, like Crossroads or Buffalo Exchange.
- Hand it down to a family member or friend!
- Sell on
- Mercari
- Poshmark
- Depop
- ThredUp
- The RealReal
- Facebook “Buy Nothing” groups!
- Consider corporate textile recycling options:
- MadeWell accepts old jeans from any brand and gives you $20 off a new pair.
- Anthropologie accepts select denim items and gives you $20 off a new pair.
- H&M accepts clothing in any condition. Bring items to a store in exchange for a “thank you” coupon towards your next purchase!
- For Days accepts clothing, shoes, and accessories in any condition in exchange for store credit.
- Ridwell accepts textiles in any condition as part of a subscription service.
6. Donate clothing of any quality at a Recycle for Change dropbox.
Advocate for Change!
While there are ways that we can reduce the detrimental impacts of fast fashion, it remains a systemic issue. A significant roadblock towards effecting change in the fashion industry is resistance from fast fashion brands. Oftentimes, gaps in existing policy enable the industry to consistently achieve greater gains at the expense of the environment and the wellbeing of its workers.
To start, try surrounding yourself with sustainable fashion trends and news. If you are on social media, Instagram accounts like @ajabarber depict ways to shop sustainably. These accounts promote items that use sustainable methods of production and are culturally-appropriate. The owners of these accounts are Emma Slade Emondson, who hosts podcasts Mixed Up (a podcast about being mixed-race) and Love Not Landfill (a podcast about shopping in your closet), and California-based Emi Ito, who promotes slow fashion companies as well as co-runs “Buy from BIPOC” which highlights the work of BIPOC designers. Both accounts actively speak out about the injustices of the fast fashion industry, the policy gaps within, and empower those around them to take action in policy and advocacy. Keeping up to date on traditional media channels like news is also important! While many injustices in the fashion industry do not make it to mainstream media like the newspaper or news channels, it is critical that we are aware of events that expose exploitation within. And do not forget to think critically about the biases of the media you consume.
Raising awareness can lead to collective action. And collective action can lead to real systemic change. In 2013, global outcry on the collapse of the Bangladesh clothing factory led to the establishment of a range of campaigns. These eventually brought together corporations, governments, and unions to create a legally binding Accord to make clothing factories safe in Bangladesh.
Shopping responsibly can be a privilege — taking the time to shop pre-loved or research on policies requires time and money. Regardless of whatever capacity in which you can shop responsibly, you can effect real change as a consumer! By reading this article and coming to WEN’s clothing swap in San Francisco, you have already become an agent of change!
Continue the conversation about fast fashion in the Women’s Environmental Network Slack channel. Resources and ideas are shared frequently between members and it is an excellent way to remain engaged with the topic.
