The lies that sell fast fashion

There are countless articles and videos breaking down the abysmal labor practices, horrifying environmental toll, and overall mountain of waste produced by the fast fashion industry. Activists and even just large swaths of the general public have been raising the alarm about this for well over a decade, but it hasn’t stopped the rise of some of the worst offenders in the industry. For example, the ultra-fast fashion brand Shein has skyrocketed in value over the past five years largely due to its marketing success on TikTok. A lot of us know that fast fashion is bad, but the only way companies like Shein still thrive is if we convince ourselves otherwise and hit “add to cart” anyway. So why do we do it?

The answer is that e-commerce has completely warped our view of what items should cost and how long they should last (this includes and extends to our obsession with Amazon and two-day shipping). We’re moving through trends at an unprecedented pace, and it’s doomed to get worse if we don’t adjust our buying habits and learn to slow down. Consumers are being manipulated, but we can do better.

Watch the video above to learn more, and don’t forget to check out the Vox article by Izzie Ramirez. You can also watch the sister video to this one from last year on why everything you buy is worse now.