As more people adopt sustainable, ethical shopping habits, there are many ways to source your new clothes! Online shops have become the norm as everything can be done remotely or from elsewhere for online purchases. Companies have designed their business models around this mentality by offering products that are either via buy now or subscribe free.
There are several companies that use less energy to produce their clothing than traditional factories that mass manufacture cheap items. This is because they are not limited by space or production quotas like larger corporations that need to keep up efficiency to remain competitive.
For example, instead of using expensive electricity to heat water to wash fabrics, most cotton clothes are machine washed and dried using natural sunlight which uses much less power. There are also strategies such as recycling leftover material or donating what you no longer want to help preserve our environment.
Sustainable fashion comes with its own set of benefits beyond saving the Earth we live on. These include improving your health by reducing exposure to harmful chemicals and materials, and supporting local economies.
Less waste
As mentioned earlier, one major component of sustainable fashion is using less material to make an item. This can be done by looking into which materials are durable and lasting and whether or not they’re recycled. If you find something that looks good and it feels sturdy, then buy it!
By investing in quality clothing, people reduce their environmental impact through reducing how much new raw material needs to be sourced and processed.
Sustainable fashion also reduces energy use as most manufacturing processes require lots of power to run them.
There has been a rise in popularity of veganism and ethically conscious shopping so even more items are manufactured without animal products. More and more companies have found ways to produce leather that does not involve killing animals, so those products are now eco-friendly too.
Not only do these practices save money, but they help preserve our natural resources too. We need those for future generations.
Less spending
One major benefit of sustainable fashion is how it can save you money! This is due to two reasons. First, less materials means lower buying costs. For example, recycled plastic bottles are mixed into clothing to make new garments.
The second reason is that most people don’t realize what all of the fees and taxes are when they buy clothes. Manufacturers pay shipping and transportation expenses which add up quickly. And we as consumers also have tax obligations for apparel purchases.
Sustainable fashion isn’t totally free, but it does use a lot less energy, water, and resources than traditional production methods. Therefore, it has much smaller overhead costs which allow them to be more affordable.
You will probably find better deals on things like jeans made from recycled material or wool fabrics that are manufactured using natural resources. These are usually one time purchase items so there is no ongoing investment.
Another way to get some cost savings with sustainability is by shopping at online sellers or marketplaces. Because these vendors do not incur expensive overhead costs, your budget can still remain stable.
Less impact on local economies
One major factor of fast fashion is its reliance on low cost, third world markets for most materials. These resources are spent staying at a competitive price, which could be used for more productive purposes elsewhere.
Sourcing from developing countries with less stringent environmental regulations can help reduce our global footprint. By limiting how much importing we do, it also limits the number of trucks that need to be manufactured and shipped back home.
By investing in environmentally friendly products and practices, you can show others by example what needs to be done. This will influence other brands to make similar changes so that they too can feel good about their contributions to sustainability.
California has some of the highest costs of living in America, making it difficult to recruit and retain top talent. A lot of businesses operate with very little regard for the environment or social justice issues, which creates an uncomfortable work atmosphere for employees and potential customers.
It is important to remember that companies spend money on things, not only while they exist, but also during their lifespan. Investing in sustainable alternatives will save money in the long run through reduced production and marketing expenses.
Less risk for brands
For fashion companies, reducing their exposure to potential financial losses is one of the most important things they can do to remain profitable. Companies that use sustainable production practices or implement more efficient manufacturing methods are limiting how much they can lose due to external factors like bad weather, a sudden drop in demand, or a competitor going out of business.
Sustainable clothing is made using eco-friendly materials and energy sources that have no lasting negative effects on the environment. This helps keep air and water quality good, and removes the need to manufacture products that may negatively affect people and other animals.
There are many different types of sustainability, but what almost all agree on is that usless resources should be minimized and our dependence on them reduced. Reducing your consumption of these resources will help mitigate this effect.
For example, paper towels are unnecessary if you learn how to wash yourself properly. Using less paper will save trees from being cut down and saved electricity from being used to process and print new papers.
Clothing is a luxury item, which adds to the problem of overconsumption. If we were to go through all of the clothes in the world, some would probably get recycled, but most end up getting thrown away or wasted because there’s nothing special about them. We could each buy just one nice dress to reduce the amount of waste.
Less risk for consumers
As we mentioned before, manufactured goods have less risks than natural resources like cotton or leather. Materials must be sourced from somewhere, and depending on where they are produced can tell you something about the producer.
Sustainable fashion is an ever growing market, which means there’s always new ways to find materials that don’t harm the environment or people who work with them. This benefits both individuals seeking out sustainable clothing, as well as companies looking to source those products.
There are many different types of sustainable fabrics, some more eco friendly than others. Luckily, most smart brands use several types of fabric to ensure their clothes last long without needing to be replaced too often.
As we age, our bodies start to lose elasticity and strength, making heavier items harder to dress ourselves. Companies create durable, lightweight garments by using lighter weight materials or moving onto tighter stitches.
More authentic products
We as consumers spend a lot of money to make ourselves look a certain way, which is mostly influenced by what brands we like and what styles are popular at the time. As fashion trends come and go, we find ourselves buying past glories or finding new ways to mix and match materials to seem still fashionable.
Sustainable fashion is an ever changing style that people can relate to and invest in because it does not fade away quickly. Materials such as leather and silk do not use too much energy or water to produce, thus limiting their negative impact on our environment.
On demand clothing allows for faster production times due to online shopping. Companies are able to produce and ship your item within hours instead of weeks, reducing air pollution and fuel usage. Only one company you have heard of produces almost all of their own clothes, but they are a great example of how efficient production can be.
These benefits apply not only to individuals, but also to businesses. Even though fast fashion may be more expensive than slower, less wasteful versions, it will likely not last a year before disappearing under a mushroom cloud of trash.
Better quality
As mentioned earlier, high fashion is an expensive niche. Luckily, there are ways to create fashionable products that do not require a very large budget or extensive skills. You can start off by buying cheap clothes online or at thrift stores and revamping them!
There are many sites where you can find and customize clothing. Some make it easy to add decorations and logos while others offer more creative freedom. It all depends on what looks best for you!
Sites like StitchItUp have you choose from over 10,000 fabrics and colors to use for your new dress. You get to pick its length, sleeve style, and even decoration options such as ruffles or lace.
Less exploitation of workers
Recent developments for sustainable fashion include strategies to help reduce waste by using recycled materials, keeping up with trends is not limited to those that purchase new clothes frequently, and buying less expensive clothing does not have to mean low quality material or designs.
Sustainable practices do not exclude high cost products, but they use resources more efficiently. This includes understanding how to source ethically sound materials, recipes for dyeing fabrics, and equipment such as dryers and lint filters used during garment manufacturing processes.
Not only are these important to preserve our natural environment, but also to conserve energy and prevent pollution. A large part of the greenhouse gas emissions we experience today comes from the production process of non-sustainably sourced raw materials being transported and processed all over the world before ending up in a landfill.
