Breaking down the cost of ethical fashion
Hands up if you’ve heard the term fast fashion! You might know the issues that come with purchasing from fast fashion counterparts rather than buying ethically made garments from local brands, as we’ve highlighted on the blog.
Although we might love the price tags on fast fashion brands because they are easily accessible, fast fashion causes many workers to not receive a fair wage, endure inadequate working conditions and even experience physical and emotional abuse.
That is why Dressember provides an Ethical Fashion Directory, where you can peruse and maybe even purchase items that are ethically made.
But what does that *actually* mean?
Ethically-made fashion aims to address the problems caused by fast fashion. One of those problems is the environmental damage it can cause to our planet.
Cotton is a prominent fabric used to make garments. It takes 20,000 liters of water to produce the equivalent of your favorite t-shirt and pair of jeans, which can cause environmental damage.
This is why you might often find that some of the ethical clothing you plan on purchasing has a higher price tag. Ethically-made garments can be more expensive than their fast fashion counterparts for many reasons. Here are some reasons why the price tag is higher:
Fair Wages
Oftentimes the local ethical fashion brand from which you’re hoping to buy is run by a small number of employees. It is important that each employee receives fair pay for the amount of work and time it takes to make some of these pieces.
You might find that your ethically-made shirt is hand-stitched. In order to avoid the exploitation of workers to manufacture pieces in dangerous working conditions, ethical fashion brands take into account the work behind the scenes to make each garment. A good brand will treat garment workers as people, not as machines.
Fabric and Materials
The tag on your favorite piece of clothing might share some important information. It could tell you where your garment was made, what size it is and oftentimes the best way to wash and dry your garment. But one of the key pieces of information on the tag is the type of fabric and material that are used to make the product.
Ethical fashion brand Mikoleón creates denim by collecting waste from other jean factories and using the fiber to create chemical and dye-free clothing. The brand will also use repurposed and deadstock textiles for their garments. Similar to Mikoleón, other brands are using dye-free fabrics and materials to provide customers with the best products. Better, more natural materials cost more money, but the quality and environmental benefits are worth the cost.
Economies of Scale
“Slow fashion” brands are known to offer made-to-order garments rather than garments that are mass-produced like some popular fashion brands. Fast-fashion brands will produce thousands of individual pieces, which changes the handcrafted process to production work.
Most ethical brands begin garments from start-to-finish and take a couple of weeks to be delivered, unlike fast fashion companies. By using this method, ethical companies reduce waste by strategically cutting and sewing fabric to avoid overproduction. That time and care with those garments come with a price.
Buying ethically-made garments can cost you more than you originally were expecting, but there are external factors that contribute to that cost. The higher price tag demonstrates the value of brands that continue to make ethical garments and provide fair wages to their workers.
Next time you’re purchasing a new addition to your wardrobe, consider how cool it would be to purchase something from a business that cares about their product and their people so much, they want to provide you their highest quality.
Although we understand that not everyone can purchase ethically made products because of the cost, buying from your local thrift store and doing secondhand shopping are other ways to shop more ethically.
About the Author
Daniela (D) Molina is a Cuban gal pursuing a M.S. in Journalism at Indiana University. Since she was young she knew that words had power. She absolutely loves moths and is proud to speak Spanish with whoever she meets.