Fast fashion is one of the biggest contributors to environmental pollution. According to Business Insider, the fashion industry emits more carbon than air travel and maritime shipping combined, totaling about 10% of all carbon emissions created by humanity. The fashion industry is the second-largest consumer of the world’s water supply and fills our oceans and rivers with microplastics. Consumers are also buying more clothes than ever before. On average, consumers are buying 60% more clothes than they were a decade before. The more clothes we buy, the more waste we seem to create. Every year, over 85% of all textiles go to the dump. If you want to learn more, Hasan Minaj did a great episode of Patriot Act about the impacts of fast fashion:
It’s undeniable that social media has contributed to the rise of fast fashion. People feel pressured not to appear in the same outfit twice, especially on their social media profiles. Instagram, especially, has become a place where fashion trends disseminate very quickly. The influencers make it known what the fashion trends of the moment are, and their followers then feel pressured to keep up with the trends. Fast fashion companies like Fashion Nova are infamously quick with putting new products on the market once a trend begins, then leveraging social media influencers to help sell them. The volume of clothing produced by these fast fashion companies only adds to the volume of waste created by consumers as the trends come and go.
As someone who does love fashion but also cares deeply about the environment, this has been a source of conflict for me. That’s why this campaign by Carlings, a Scandinavian fashion brand, caught my eye. Carlings teamed up with Virtue Worldwide to create the adDRESS THE FUTURE campaign, the “world’s first digital fashion collection.” The digital collection allows consumers to show off their fashion on social media without having a detrimental effect on the environment. You can upload a photo, then Carlings 3-D technology custom tailors your clothing of choice to fit you perfectly. Now, you can show off your outfit to all your followers without creating more waste or adding to your carbon footprint.
adDRESS THE FUTURE won the Digital Craft prize at Cannes Lions. Definitely a worthy winner! Not only is the technology impressive, but the campaign was an innovative way to draw attention to and address the environmental impacts of fast fashion. However, there is something a little bit dystopian about the idea that we no longer purchase clothing out of necessity but for social value, communicated through our online profiles. But, that is the reality we live in and I commend Carlings/Virtue for their creative approach to this phenomenon. I wonder what implications this has on the future of the fashion industry. Will more brands release digital fashion lines? Will we one day have a fashion app that gives us a virtual closet? How will the fashion industry mobilize to reduce its environmental impact?
I look forward to hearing what you all think!
Sources:
https://www.virtueworldwide.com/case-studies/address-the-future
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