FINAL

With the word “fashion” being thrown around more loosely than ever in current times,, we continue to beg the question, what is fashion? What does this word even mean anymore? What did it mean before? Is it self expression? Is it a trend? Is it sustainability? Consumerism? Good advertising? Art? Or a status symbol? The answer to that question is more lost than it’s ever been, because fashion means something different to each individual that you ask. Yet, anyone immersed in the world of fashion will typically give you their half assed version of what they think fashion means to themselves and globally. With fashion becoming more and more of a globalized practice, it’s impossible to pinpoint what the industry even stands to represent, but we can ponder with many questions that might point us to some sort of conclusion.

Industry people always want to know; “Who makes that?”, “What’s their brand mission?”, “Who’s buying that?”, “Why would anyone buy that?”, “Is that sustainable?”, “Where’s it made?”. The answers to any of these questions can be found with a quick google search, but the depth that I always long for is never found within the black and white of what many modern companies want you to read. So I constantly dig and I dig in order to try to find the real “who?”, “what?”, “when?”, “where?”, “how?”, and “why?” about every player in the fashion world today, in some faint attempt to grasp what exactly is going on in fashion in 2021.

We’re living in a post-pandemic, post-quarantine, post-seasonal, pre-apocalyptic world where fashion consumption is split between so many massive and niche markets that whether or not you want to be a player in the fashion game, you’re almost forced to be. With social media and massive marketing strategies in place we’re exposed to an abundance of information and content telling our minds to consume without question. The year 2020 saw a massive surge of online purchasing in the consumer world. Covid had stunted the retail industry tremendously. We’ve seen thousands of stores close down and an uncountable number of employees laid off. Coupled with the world being forced to stay inside, the minds of millions were turned to the digital world.

With the world turning digital I noticed brands blowing up their content creation and exploring every aspect of digital media. People stuck at home with little to do became enthralled at the endless amount of possibilities that “limited” movement opened up. “Adaptation” was the keyword for enabling a progressive society in trifling times. COVID has caused companies to

pull out of fashion week and move towards other methods of displaying a collection. Some brands went remote and hosted their own shows in a remote location, increasing the essence of exclusivity, white other brands moved shows online using AR and VR technology, allowing consumers to feel as if they were a part of something tangible.

Regarding the philosophy of what “fashion” is today, I struggle to believe that a “tangible” experience can be sought solely through the digital world. Yet, millions of people will disagree with my ideology. For me, fashion is art, its passion, it’s the process of creating a moving story in real time, in the third dimension, from two dimensional objects and natural elements we experience in the real world. Fashion is movement, it’s not downloadable, its not experienced through a screen, but exclusively through the garments we express ourselves with as we layer them on our flesh. Since the lockdown, I’ve noticed a dissonance in humanity’s relationship with fashion. This notion had been building up since long before the pandemic, but only in the world crawling into the caverns of their individuality has it really been brought to my eyes that the word “fashion” and what it means to me is something lost in the flow of time.

The fashion industry of today is a global powerhouse that’s worth over $600 billion. The machine is fueled by necessity, greed, and a misunderstanding of the importance of the flow of consumption and its effects on the world we live in. We have people who consume clothes for necessity, those who buy what they need to shelter themselves from the environments of reality, those who consume for status and lust, and those who consume to express themselves through their egos. The most dangerous I believe is the latter. Those who have to buy into “fashion” to feed their mind with the idea that what they’re consuming will fill a void in their soul that can’t be masked by how they display themselves to the outside world. The greedy have and will always consume what their money can grant them, as they know no better than to give into the marketing and advertising and “lifestyle” ploy that will set them apart from the masses. The less intrusive is those who buy what they need, mindlessly, and move on. Though, with the three categories I've mentioned, they all share an unavoidable intersectional defeat to humanity’s capitalistic world.

To the untrained eye, multilevel, multi billion dollar marketing will always succeed in drawing customers to purchasing without an understanding of the “why”. Technology is so strong and humans are too weak to see through near perfect corporate means of selling an idea. Whether it’s necessity, greed, or lust, humans are still incapable of shopping smart. This concept is most prevalent when highlighting the global climate crisis and how fashion has a huge impact on planet earth. With a little research, you’ll find out that 70% of clothing ends up in landfills each year. It doesn’t take a mathematician to say that an astounding 30% of clothing is actually kept longer than that. People are so unconsciously consumptive that they don’t realize the magnitude of their wasteful habits.

Thankfully, there are independent fashion companies, brands, and labels working to fight the “good” fight in an attempt to end wasteful consumption. I’d like to highlight The Fashion Pact and their efforts to create a sustainable shift in the global fashion industry. The Fashion Pact is a global coalition of fashion and textile companies that have banded together with a promise of clean consumption. There are also B Corporations, corporations that are independently monitored and verified to meet high standards of environmental and social performance. These companies are transparent with their footprint and accountability. The two aforementioned movements are pivotal in the development of a cleaner fashion industry. It’s hard to say if these “small” movements can create the shift I desire in the fashion world, but nevertheless, they need to be acknowledged and supported without question. This is because consumers of the world today should take full responsibility in accordance to how they respond to the fast fashion world. It is also without question that without an infrastructural shift in the consumer mindset, the world will continue on the path that it is on today.

I believe my idea of “fashion” and the impact it will have on a passionate consumer

will die with time if the push in sustainable efforts declines. People will be less inclined to shop for emotional emotional reasons if they become unaware of what emotions drive them to consume. Fashion should be an artistic and passionate endeavor, rather than a robotic experience driven by large companies and their ability to draw in consumers through their advertising and marketing campaigns. Technology plays a huge part in people’s relationship with fashion too. Being glued to phones and computers causes an overflow in the absorption of media, so people are having a harder and harder time thinking for themselves. The digital world is beautiful and filled with distractions that make it easy to buy into a vision or an idea that strikes someone’s short term dopamine fill.

I think the world needs to understand what’s actually controlling the machine that is the fashion industry. It’s less and less a matter of why you’re buying something, and more and more a matter of what you’re buying. This megalith of a structure that holds global jurisdiction on what people wear is responsible for the ever growing market of fast fashion. Zara, H&M and Forever 21 have such strong marketing strategies and so much money to put into them that it’s almost crazy for some people to not buy into them. That being said, I don’t think these companies will stand the test of time because of their negative impact on the environment. It’s only a matter of time before people really open their eyes and start making smart choices when it comes to buying clothes. I’ve noticed a lot of new independent designers making waves in sustainable efforts, everyone needs to be on the same page as to what they’re buying and why.

I stand behind B corp certified companies like Patagonia, Bombas, and Eileen Fisher because their production methods live up to an environmentally friendly standard. Going green is the future, whether it’s utilizing natural materials, biodegradable packaging, or reducing waste, there are so many means to operate in a way that doesn’t cause waste. Companies with proper ethics and morals will be the ones that push into the future of fashion. If we continue to highlight the negative effects of greedy fast fashion corporations, then fast fashion companies will be forced to either slow their production, or shift to operating under the same regulations and standards of B corporations. Now is the most crucial time for businesses to either get behind sustainable efforts, or face negative backlash from the media and consumers.

The media plays a huge role in the fashion industry today since most people are exposed to new information from the internet or social media. So, those who are creating content on social media or those who blog and write articles about the fashion industry must play their part in informing people about the necessity for the fashion industry to become sustainable. Since the industry has lost so much physical presence, it’s becoming harder for people to recognize the real life impacts of the fashion world. When you’re consuming from home and engaging in online purchasing it’s very easy to forget that you’re not supporting locally established retail spaces anymore. Before the pandemic and before millions of people were displaced from their jobs, you could shop at a retail location and at least feel like you’re supporting an infrastructure that provides countless jobs to people around the world, but now that we’re going directly to the company for our purchasing, we’re no longer giving them incentive to provide retail jobs.

It’s only when you understand that companies selling fashion are growing farther and farther from the intimacy of feeling something and trying something before you buy it, that you’ll start questioning why you support certain brands over others. Jobs in retail are dwindling, storefronts are closing, and companies are becoming less willing to spend the money to create a physical environment for shopping. So instead of blindly buying online from companies with good advertising, do some research into their products, their production methods, and their impact on people and the environment. As much as companies are responsible for creating products that don’t contribute to waste, we as consumers are responsible for not buying into branding and enabling them to continue to cause damage to the planet.

It’s inevitable that the world of fashion will move in one of two directions. Either the industry will progress into a structure that serves the purpose of not only productincing tasteful items of clothing for people to consume consciously, but also items that do not contribute to waste, or the industry will continue to be one that’s fueled by money, greed, unconscious purchasing, and a contribution to global waste. The direction that the industry will take is going to be decided by not only the companies that manufacture the clothes of today, but also by the people who consume from the industry. I believe anyone interested in a healthy population and a healthy planet should take measures into their own hands and contribute to restructuring the industry that currently exists. I don’t believe any roles or institutions in the fashion industry will be replaced, or should be replaced, but should instead be purely restructured in a way that benefits all parties involved. This is the only way to sustain our desire for fashion and the Earth’s need for a shift in our environmental impact.

References.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHq4u88aiqY

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pUOh8i_3grHa7C27QLr3_HPRnWN1TibqRMs8P1o2Pms/edit

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1O_34KNONBw4ovyRuvWLHZqYq2bwRxqJK54RpS_CnnOE/edit

I used almost every week’s lessons as references but Classroom is not allowing me to link them to this document. All my statistics come from the lessons and the slides.

Looking back…

This was sweet in a classroom environment and as a sentiment to not scare my teachers.

BUT

B CORP, SUSTAINABLE, R2W, FAST FASHION… BURN IT ALL. We don’t any of that piss and shite. I stand with independent gorilla force characters in the decentralization of the fashion industry and the literal bombardment of any corporate entity creating waste, wasteful mindedness, or wasteful creativity. What does that mean exactly? Read my next joint to find out.

Over and out..

Sincerely,

Giampiero