We’ve all walked into school on the first day or into a new environment, and for most of us, our major concern was what we were wearing. Would we fit in? Did these clothes tell people who we are? What would be the “look” of next week?

These are the very same questions people who work in the fashion industry have to ask themselves. With a rise in fast fashion, reliance on getting these questions correct has become a huge part of the fashion industry. Creating styles quickly takes a toll on the environment and people. 

Fast fashion has many problems associated with it. Polyester tends to be one of the most popular fabrics used in the fashion industry because it’s cheap and can be manufactured quickly. In other words, it’s basically the perfect thing to use when you want to mass produce a product and get the most bang for your buck. The problem with it is that since it’s so cheap, after someone wears it a few times it can easily be torn or faded. 

Being torn so easily means these clothing items get thrown away without a second thought. This means an increase in textiles being thrown away which is a pollutant and a waste of something that could be recycled. Further, Polyester is created by fossil fuels which further contributes to global warming.

If the way fast fashion contributes to issues in our environment isn’t enough, it also is a major cause in labor exploitation. Many women and children in underdeveloped countries are paid next to nothing to crank out thousands of carbon copies of a piece of clothing in unsafe conditions. They are overworked to get shipments out and make sure companies don’t miss the latest fad. 

While following the latest fashion trend might seem like the “in” thing to do, it might be good for your wallet to take a second to consider the real costs of the clothes just sitting in your closet.