The main goal of fast fashion brands is to make cheap clothing as fast as they can. This attitude causes serious environmental, social, and economic problems. In addition, the quality of fast fashion clothing is what causes us, as individuals the most trouble.
Fast fashion clothing is made with cheap materials, stitched together in a matter of minutes, and desgined to be out of style by next season. Fast fashion brands make poor quality, disposable clothes and accessories on purpose to keep people buying more.
The entire fast fashion business modell is built upon selling cheap items by the billions at a low price. We’ve put together a list of the worst fast fashion companies of the world. Make sure to check if your favorite brand is among them!
If you look close enough, you can spot the signs of low-quality clothing already in the stores. You can even save money and time by buying a little more expensive, but better quality and longer lasing items!
Why is it Impossible for Fast Fashion to be Good Quality?
Most people say that they can’t buy anything other than fast fashion because “normal” clothing brands are too expensive. But in reality, fast fashion is the one that’s too cheap!
If you would like to be more sustainable fashion-wise, but don’t have the budget to afford anything but fast fashion, we have some tips and tricks for you in this post.
But how is it possible for a T-shirt to be less expensive than a cup of coffee? And if it is less expensive than a coffee, why would you expect it to last longer?
Major fast fashion retailers are competing for consumers by pushing further and further down their prices. For that, they have to find ways to cut their expenses and compromise on quality, materials, and workers’ welfare.
Here’s how they do it…
Polyester
Polyester is the worst clothing material that ever existed and it’s one of the main materials used by fast fashion companies due to its cheap cost.
It is a synthetic material made of petrol which is, obviously, bad for the environment, and releases microplastic to our water systems when washed.
Polyester is not breathable which means that you get all sweaty under it. Because of this, it’s especially unsuitable for summer clothes and underwear.
Polyester clothes tend to fade very quickly, and just look generally worn out after only a couple of wears and washes.
But not all fast fashion clothes are made of polyester, are they?
I looked at the 30 most current items of 10 well-known fast fashion brands (300 items in total) and what I’ve found out is shocking:
84% of fast fashion clothing and accessories contain polyester or other synthetic materials.
Here’s the breakdown of how each brand performed:
| Brand | Contains synthetic | Doesn’t contain synthetic or the synthetic is 100% recycled | N/A* | Percentage of items containing raw synthetic material |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nike | 8 | 0 | 22 | 100% |
| Fashion Nova | 28 | 1 | 1 | 97% |
| Pretty Little Thing | 14 | 1 | 15 | 97% |
| Zara | 28 (some items were partly recycled but all contained raw polyester) | 2 | 0 | 93% |
| Shein | 28 | 2 | 0 | 93% |
| Victoria’s Secret | 26 | 4 | 0 | 87% |
| Asos | 23 | 7 | 0 | 77% |
| Forever 21 | 22 | 8 | 0 | 73% |
| Mango | 21 | 9 | 0 | 70% |
| H&M | 16 | 14 | 0 | 53% |
| Total | 214 | 48 | 38 | 84% |
Next time you’re out shopping make sure to take a look at the tags! Synthetic materials to look out for are polyester, or anything else beginning with poly-, acrylic, nylon, lycra, spandex, and elastane.
If the synthetic material is recycled that’s already better for the planet, but that doesn’t guarantee a better quality!
The thickness of the fabric
Personally, I think the most visible difference between fast fashion and quality fashion is that the thickness of fast fashion clothes is around 75% of what it should be. And I’m not talking about sheer tops that are supposed to look like that, but regular T-shirts and jeans.
This is why a lot of fast fashion clothes are see-through, there’s simply not enough material in them.
The lack of thickness also makes the clothes less durable because they can get damaged and ripped more easily.
Cheap Labor
You might know that fast fashion companies produce their clothes in sweatshops. This means underpaid workers, sometimes child labor, poor or even unsafe conditions, and very fast-paced work. Do you think this is the perfect recipe for good quality production? I don’t think so…
If you’ve seen videos of garment workers you know that they stitch together an item in less than a minute! That’s insane!
As a result, clothes fall apart very quickly, it comes apart at the seams, or the threads come undone.
Factory workers simply don’t have the time to do a decent job!
You can check how many threads are already pulling on clothes in the stores before anyone even purchased the garment. Even though it is very usual, it isn’t normal for a thread to pull so quickly, that’s just a sign of bad craftsmanship!
Consumer Behavior
Believe it or not, our shopping habit is one of the reasons why fast fashion is so bad quality.
By buying the cheapest clothes possible we’re pushing down the prices and therefore the quality of our clothes.
People don’t take care of their clothes as they used to a couple of decades ago. This throwaway culture allows fast fashion brands to produce manufacture such low-quality clothes.
It’s a vicious cycle that’s hurting our planet, the workers, and the consumers as well. And the only way to stop it is to boycott fast fashion!
And if you want to learn how to take care of your clothes, we have an awesome post that tells you everything you need to know to get started!
Why is it Bad to Buy Low-Quality Clothing
Buying low-quality fast fashion is bad for the environment, but it is also hurting you! Having better clothes could actually save you money and time and cheap clothing might be dangerous for your health as well!
Health Effects of Fast Fashion
We often forget that our skin is our biggest organ. That being said what we wear is just as important for our health as what we eat!
Clothes are treated with harsh chemicals and dyes which might cause rashes or even cancer.
Sustainable fashion brands are limiting the use of chemicals in their production, thus they are safer than fast fashion where cost-efficiency is the main priority.
Mental health is also a topic worth mentioning. The constant feeling of pressure to keep up with fast fashion trends can cause addictions. Also, we’re often trying to fill a void with impulse shopping (just like binge eating) which should be better solved with a more mindful approach.
Why Cheap Clothing is Actually More Expensive and Time-Consuming
Low-quality fast fashion is more expensive and time-consuming simply because we have to buy more.
I used to wear cheap skinny jeans that I’ve worn out in a matter of months. That meant going to the mall, trying on jeans (an activity that I absolutely hate), and paying that 15 bucks every three or four months.
Now I wear $60 jeans that last for years and also fit me better than the ones I used to buy before.
But how do you exactly save money by buying more expensive clothes? That doesn’t make any sense… Or does it? Read about the Cost Per Wear principle which explains how you can save money by simply wearing your existing clothes more times instead of buying new ones.
Environmental Damage & Waste
The fashion industry is one of the top polluters in the world. Clothing production uses tons of water and electricity and requires huge lands to grow materials. Chemicals that are used in the process are being released in the water and soil that has disastrous effects on the surrounding nature and the people who live nearby.
And all this destruction for these cheap things we throw away so quickly?
I dare you to read this post to learn exactly how much waste is produced by the fashion industry!
And recycling won’t save us either! Most materials, especially fabric blends, can’t be recycled effectively. This means we can only recycle them into even lower quality materials for rags, cloths, or insulation, but not into clothing materials.
Clothes that end up in landfills take decades or even 200 years in case of polyester to decompose.
Shop Sustainable Fashion for Better Quality
Sustainable fashion takes into consideration the livelihood of garment workers, the environmental footprint of clothing production, animal welfare, and consumers in contrary to fast fashion’s profit-first approach.
Sustainable and slow fashion values quality instead of quantity. Its aim is to create good-quality items with better production methods to reduce the environmental damage and the textile waste of the fashion industry.
Sustainably made clothes use better materials, are better tailored, and are made to last longer. They are a little more expensive than fast fashion but they are worth the investment in the long run.
Check out my list of top sustainable fashion brands for recommendations here!
Purchasing slow fashion requires a mindset shift that could be difficult at first, but very rewarding long-term. You’re going to appreciate and take care of your clothes more because you’re no longer going to think of them as disposables. You’re also going to develop a more cohesive personal style because the items you buy today will last you years, unlike most fast fashion fads.
Related Questions
Are there any advantages of fast fashion? Fast fashion employs a tremendous amount of people in developing countries who might not have jobs otherwise. However, they could easily afford to pay more to help these people out of poverty and provide them with better working conditions.
Are more expensive clothes better quality? Usually, more expensive clothes are of better quality. They are made with better materials by better-paid workers. However, luxury brands like Gucci and Louis Vuitton are overpriced because of the logo, not the quality, and they don’t worth your money.
