We rarely think about where our clothes go when we don’t need them anymore. Each year 1.3 trillion gallons of water is used for fabric dyeing alone. Eventually, every problem of fast fashion comes back around to the overall lack of transparency. (Alternatives Journal 2015), 57. What can’t be sold is torn up and turned into insulation and mattress stuffing. 22. In particular, it changes our perception of the lifespan of the garments we buy, and tries to convince us that outfit repeating is a faux pas, when we know it’s a sustainability must do. In the past year, 24% of Australians have thrown away an item of clothing after wearing it just once. 63% of textile fibres are derived from petrochemicals. The average UK household spends £1,700 on purchasing clothing annually. Fast fashion retailers have made their name by giving us a chance to buy cheaply made pieces that look like designer clothes for next to nothing. UK disposes of 350,000 tonnes of clothing in landfills every year. If you like our site, think our work is important and want to pledge your support, you can pledge a donation through Patreon. The high cost of a large fashion industry in countries like India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Cambodia and many more is the impact on the local environment and workers’ rights violations. In Australia, some garment outworkers earn as little as $7 an hour and, in some cases, as little as $4 well which is below the minimum wage of $17.49 per hour. (Oxfam 2017), 30. Fast fashion definition is - an approach to the design, creation, and marketing of clothing fashions that emphasizes making fashion trends quickly and cheaply available to consumers —usually hyphenated when used before another noun. If the industry doesn’t change, and it’s fashion business as usual, the apparel industry’s climate impact is expected to increase 49% by 2030. This is precisely why they neglect the sustainability aspect of production, starting from using non-biodegradable fabrics that are fully processed with chemicals, to throwing production waste into water streams, lakes, and oceans. (Quantis 2018), 6. Read on to discover some hard fast fashion facts and statistics—we guarantee you’ll put down that $10 t-shirt and back away slowly in case it bites. The same fast fashion retailers sourcing from Leicester are also selling clothes so cheaply that they are being treated as single use items. (YouGov 2017), 68. Where does your clothing go when it’s not needed anymore? (World Resources Institute 2017). It goes without saying, fast fashion poses a huge threat to the planet and all of its inhabitants and is one big trigger for climate change. (Choice 2014), 33. Fast fashion has been a particularly hot segment and a source of enviable growth for some clothing companies. (WRAP 2011), 13. “Fast fashion lures us into buying more clothes than we need,” explains Lucy Seigle, a journalist specialising in environmental issues. Such revenue helps keep this website running, helps us pay our growing core team and allows us to keep the content free for readers like you. The following statistics, published by the UNEP and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, ... Fast fashion. This linear fashion model of buying, wearing and quickly discarding clothes negatively impacts people and the planet’s resources. (YouGov 2017), 67. Wear the change you want to see. Check out the Directory or download the app to discover ethical fashion brands that meet your needs while treating people, the planet, and animals with the respect they deserve. Fast fashion produces 20% of global wastewater, contaminating rivers, oceans, drinking water and soil. (WRAP 2011), 7. Fast Fashion Pollution Statistics: Fast fashion emits 1.2 billion tons of CO2 per year, more than air travel and shipping combined. She wants to employ all of her writing strengths to help people and businesses create good quality content. Recycling is, unsurprisingly, a massive problem in the fast fashion industry. Thankfully for us conscious consumers, there are countless brands doing their bit to transform the fashion industry for the better. The fashion world can be sceptical when it comes to shouting about important causes, especially considering relating issues like the environment and sustainability. It takes about 2,720 litres of water to produce just one cotton shirt – a number equivalent to what an average person drinks over three years. It’s not unusual these days for people to buy fashion designs direct from the catwalks and runways via social media and other shopping apps. The structure is kept sorted at all times, enabling fast lookup for exact matches (equals operator) and ranges (for example, greater than, less than, and BETWEEN operators). Make sure to share it on social! (Global Fashion Agenda 2017), 46. (Greenpeace 2017), 59. When she's not perfecting a sentence or coaching business clients, you will find her at her certified organic farm reconnecting with nature. In the end, it all comes to the way we treat our clothes. Read CNN's Hurricane Statistics Fast Facts and learn information about the deadliest and costliest tropical storms, tropical depressions and hurricanes. Polyester production emitted about 706 billion kg (1.5 trillion pounds) of greenhouse gases in 2015 equivalent of the annual emissions of 185 coal-fired power plants. (Global Fashion Agenda 2017), 24. In 2017, however, Jigsaw decided to break the mould, basing its print, social, and digital marketing campaign around the importance of immigration in fashion. It takes about 170,000 litres of water to grow a kilogram of wool. Never miss our posts. A tree data structure that is popular for use in database indexes. Disclosure: The curated list is based on the writer’s research and all data and stats are current at time of publishing. (ABS), 58. Instead of recycling or donating clothing that wasn’t sold, most fast fashion companies are often spotted tossing or burning the unsold stock, which leads to terrifying losses of natural and financial resources. On average a person consumes 11.4kg of apparel each year. Entire business models are built on the premise of “fast fashion,” providing clothes cheaply and quickly to consumers through shorter fashion cycles. This type of index is available for most storage engines, such as InnoDB and MyISAM. Some fast fashion retailers have introduced recycling programs that give customers a store discount in exchange for their old clothing. (EJF), 43. If you make a purchase using a link we may receive a commission. Fast fashion is not just a sustainability problem, but a key feminist issue. Marketing can make or break the success of a brand’s campaign or product launch. The average Canadian throws 32 kilograms of textiles into landfills each year. (Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2017). Misleading with statistics is nothing new. Buying new clothes without thinking twice is not only budget-unfriendly, but also unsustainable. To put it simply, buying cheap items that will only be worn twice means contributing to the mistreatment of humans and nature. (Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2017). Polyester and cotton dominate the global textiles and fibre market, 51% and 24% respectively (Lenzing, 2017), 36. Researchers anticipate the industry’s water consumption will increase by 50% by 2030 as cotton producers are located in countries suffering water stress, such as China and India. (World Resources Institute 2017). 75% of Australians have thrown clothes away at some point in the past year. (Elizabeth Cline, ‘Overdressed’ 2012), 17. We buy more clothes per person in the UK than any other country in Europe. Of course transparency by itself is not enough – we need brands to commit to high standards and effective assurance systems to know if brands and their suppliers are actually delivering on their commitments. - Actualités et Infos en direct au Cameroun et dans le Monde. (Global Fashion Agenda 2017), 55. How to use fast fashion in a sentence. Australians throw out 6 tonnes or 6,000 kgs of clothing textiles every 10 minutes (War On Waste 2017), 61. Whether buying the latest trends to stock boutiques and shops, or finding the perfect materials to bring visions to life, this nexus of apparel, florals, textiles and décor is truly a place to be inspired. But their sales techniques are having a drastic impact on consumer behaviour around the world. (. Fast fashion is growing, well… fast. Download our app to discover ethical brands and see how your favourites measure up. Fashion consumption is expected to grow, with sales of clothing projected to rise to $2.1 trillion by 2025. (McKinsey 2016), 27. Clothing has become more readily available than ever, triggering our consumer behaviors to change for the worse. However, the statistics paint a different picture: the Fast Fashion market is booming, which begs the question - why is this kind of clothing still so popular among consumers despite high-profile negative press? We’ve covered the issues around fast fashion in great detail over the years. B B-tree. There is also a problem with fabrics that brands claim as natural and organic. Speaking of the sustainability aspect, it’s also essential to know how brands avoid or dispose of waste products in the production process. (Fairtrade 2017), 37. The clothing produced each year equates to 14 items of clothing for every person on earth. The number of garments produced globally exceeded 100 billion for the first time in 2014. House of Common Environmental Audit Committee. Don’t be fooled by baby steps like recycling and conscious collections, which may be no more than greenwashing. By 2040, over 95% of all purchases will be made online. The volume of water consumed by the global fashion industry is 79 billion cubic meters equivalent to 32 million Olympic-size swimming pools. (McKinsey 2016), 40. (Global Fashion Agenda 2017), 31. Then please support Eco Warrior Princess on Patreon! RCA-Bakouma : braquage de 7 véhicules humanitaires Publié le 06.04.2021 By now it’s probably easy to guess that the conventional cotton fabric most often used in the fast fashion industry is made unethically. Of the 2,400 substances used in clothing manufacturing, researchers found that approximately 30% of the identified substances posed a risk to human health. Let’s take a deeper dive into the industry and see the statistics that lay behind the ever-changing garments that won’t stop flying off the shelves. The contents of the average UK household wardrobe are worth £4,000 or more. (EPA), 56. (Global Fashion Agenda 2017), 32. (Textile Beat 2016), 10. It is commonly known that fast fashion production facilities are located in countries that are referred to as emerging or developing markets. This list also contains affiliate links. (Textile Beat 2016). Western Europeans consume 22kg of new textiles each. The general trend of fast fashion brands trying to “do sustainable” is unsatisfying, to say the least. (McKinsey 2016). 61% of online shoppers go for fashion products. Sustainable fashion cannot exist without transparency. Water-thirsty plant cotton linked to water depletion, accounts for 30% of all textile fibre consumption. By compressing production cycles and turning out up-to-the-minute designs, these businesses have enabled shoppers not only to expand their wardrobes but also to refresh them quickly. Not only do these people have to work exhausting hours, but the payment they get is far from fair. 2. We’ve broken them down into subcategories for your reading pleasure. Fast fashion is "an approach to the design, creation, and marketing of clothing fashions that emphasizes making fashion trends quickly and cheaply available to consumers." It is usually characterised by high volume, low margin, fast-paced, cheap and disposable items. Eco Warrior Princess uses affiliate links. So, the exact opposite of what we want! (YouGov 2017), 63. (Greenpeace 2017). Fast fashion retailers save billions of dollars by locating their factories in emerging countries. Sales of clothing have almost doubled from one trillion dollars in 2002 to 1.8 trillion dollars in 2015. Although the cultivation area of cotton covers only 3% of the planet’s agricultural land, its production consumes an estimated 16% of all insecticides and 7% of all herbicides. Here Are 5 Things to Keep in Mind as You Begin Your Sustainable Lifestyle Journey - Eco Warrior Princess, How to Be A Skeptical Shopper: A Primer on Identifying Greenwashing, Beyond America: 7 Podcasts to Learn More About World Politics and Global Affairs, Why You Need to Make Local Politics A Part Of Your Everyday Life, 9 Eco-Friendly & Ethical Sports Bras & Crop Top Styles For Fitness Lovers, Sustainable Textiles Spotlight: The Truth Behind Bamboo Fabric, Regenerative Sustainability: The New Frontier in the Sustainability Movement. 41% of Australian have thrown unwanted clothes straight in the bin. Approximately 8,000 synthetic chemicals are used throughout the world to turn raw materials into textiles. (Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2017), 39. Transparency is a key precondition for industry action to eliminate human rights violations, treat workers and communities with respect and eliminate or reduce pollution and unsustainable resource use. (Alternatives Journal 2015), 35. Check out the top marketing in fashion statistics to see what strategies are propelling brands in 2021 and beyond. Feature image via Unsplash. 24% of Australians aged 16-34 throw away clothes because they are ‘bored’ of wearing them. Société Droits réservés. The idea is that speedy mass production combined with cheap labor will make clothes cheaper for those buying them, thus allowing these fast fashion trends to maintain economic success. Of the total fibre input used for clothing, 87% is landfilled or incinerated costing $100 billion annually. *Boohoo is a possible dishonourable exception – their final production is in Leicester UK to reduce time to market, but they have still been accused of labour rights abuses. Crude oil is incredibly damaging to the environment, and it goes into a huge amount of garments produced for fast fashion. Australians dispose of 500,000 tonnes of leather and textile waste. In the past 15 years, the average number of times a garment is worn before it ceases to be used has decreased by 36%. Combined with open-loop cycles, cotton production within the fast fashion industry poses a significant threat to health and well-being for agricultural workers, for eco systems and ultimately for all of us. You should be suspicious of any brand that is not prepared to fully account for where and how it makes the clothes it wants you to buy. (WRAP 2011), 14. Anyway, enough about that, let’s get on with delivering you some cold hard facts. (YouGov 2017), 64. Furthermore, given the speed at which designs are being produced, no longer are fashion collections limited to four seasons; new fashion collections are introduced each week, with some mainstream retail stores receiving fresh products daily. The average person buys 60% more items of clothing and keeps them for about half as long as 15 years ago. 72% of women shop online as compared to 68% of men. The cost barriers have also been removed, with factories producing cheaper designer imitations that flood the market within days of the collections being launched at major fashion shows. It means that all of the waste goes straight outside to pollute waters and lands. (Global Fashion Agenda 2017), 45. (YouGov 2017), 69. It’s no secret that fast fashion’s modus operandi is to produce as much as possible as cheaply as possible. Global average consumption of new textiles is 13kg per person. By thinking of the garments we wear as short term tools rather than long term investments, we contribute to wasteful consumption patterns that inevitably lead us towards drastic climate change. (Global Fashion Agenda 2017), 42. Americans throw away a total of 14 million tonnes of textiles each year. We may earn a commission on sales made using our offer codes or affiliate links. About the author: Jennifer is an aspiring content writer who likes to write about sustainable solutions, greener lifestyle options, and organic products. Fixing your clothes instead of throwing them away can make an incredible contribution to the reduction in global pollution. A glut of second hand clothing swamping the market is depressing prices for used textiles. Making one kilogram of fabric generates an average of 23 kilograms of greenhouse gases. (WRAP 2011), 15. 30% of Australians have thrown away more than ten items of clothing in the past year. Fashion has a huge impact on people and the planet, and fast fashion owns a large and growing share of the problem. But, offering discounts does act as a stimulus to drive more sales …. 20. (WRAP 2011), 44. This equates to around 1.7 billion items of clothing not been worn for at least a year. 54. As sad as it is, a vast majority of fashion retailers do not clean and reuse water from production facilities, using a so-called “open-loop cycle” method. The fast fashion industry is one of the most polluting in the world and responsible for many social and environmental problems. 50. As we’ve seen, most* fast fashion corporations locate their production facilities in emerging countries. However, the working conditions are still worth mentioning—and prioritising. (YouGov 2017), 66. Apparel consumption is expected to rise by 63%  from 62 million tons today to 102 million tons in 2030. Once you know that over half of fast fashion employees don’t even get a living wage, the overall mistreatment of these workers doesn’t sound like breaking news. Jennifer Nini is a writer, activist and the founding editor of Eco Warrior Princess. 18. (Quantis 2018), 23. On average, the global water footprint of a UK household’s clothing exceeds 200,000 litres per year – enough to fill over 1,000 bathtubs. 52. Garment manufacturing accounts for 20% of global industrial water pollution. Most of these items never get recycled. Marketing in Fashion Statistics. Sign up for our weekly newsletter and receive our free sustainable lifestyle guide. Nearly half of UK adults put tossed some clothing in the bin in the last 12 months. The 80 million workers in the fashion supply chain are overwhelmingly women, but the majority of retailers show no little concern with maintaining gender equality in the workplace. So whether you’re writing a report on the global fashion industry, completing a fashion-related assignment for school or just interested to learn more about fast fashion, here are 69 facts and statistics about fast fashion that will shock you… and hopefully inspire you towards ethical shopping and sustainable fashion consumption. (Greenpeace 2017), 41. H&M announces store closures amid rise in fast fashion competitors like Kmart and Big W . 30% of clothing in the average UK wardrobe has not been worn in the past year or so. The resulting polyester AKA plastic-based materials also introduce the increasingly worrying issue of microfibres …: As terrifying as it sounds, well over half of fabrics that are used by fast fashion brands are actually made out of petrochemicals. The most successful fast fashion brands use influencers and other ploys to push trend driven items at ridiculously low prices, all while producing new clothing collections as often as every two weeks. (WRAP 2011), 60. The LA Fashion District is the west coast hub of the apparel industry. (Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2017). 21% of Australians estimate that they own over 100 garments (excluding underwear or accessories). Statistics are used to sell products, elicit support for a candidate, or get us to ‘Like’ things. 57% of Australians dispose of clothes because they no longer fit. (WRAP 2011), 12. UK online fashion retailer ASOS saw its worldwide revenue increase by over 300 million British pounds in 2019, reaching the company's largest recorded turnover. The carbon emissions generated by the clothing of the average UK household is equivalent to driving an average modern car 6,000 miles. The most well known proof of this is the collapse of the Dhaka garment factory in 2013 that took the lives of 1,134 people and left around 2,500 injured. Fashion Industry Statistics The global apparel market is valued at 3 trillion dollars, 3,000 billion, and accounts for 2 percent of the world's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).1 Source: FashionUnited.com¹ Retail value of luxury goods market: 339.4 billion dollars Value of of the menswear industry: 402 billion dollars Value of the womenswear industry: 621 billion dollars… Over the last couple of decades the production process has accelerated, fuelled by globalisation, industry competition, technology and customers’ obsession with “I gotta have it now” instant gratification mentality. (McKinsey 2016), 38 Less than 1% of material used to produce clothing is recycled into new textiles and fibres. The main goal of fast fashion giants is all about lowering production costs. By that score, we know that purchasing fast fashion items directly contributes to the global polluting machine that is to blame for 8% of the world’s carbon emissions. North Americans is the largest consumers of new textiles, consuming 37kgs each. That all comes at a huge cost to the lives of the workers who make the clothes, as well as the environment. 51. If you’ve landed on this page, we assume you already know the definition of fast fashion, but for those of you who don’t, fast fashion is a term to describe the speed at which fashion designs move from design concept to fashion product available for purchase. This is not only due to customers getting rid of their wardrobe items, but also due to retail stores. The total level of fashion waste is expected to be 148 million tons by 2030—equivalent to annual waste of 17.5 kg per capita across the planet. 2011a). More than 50% of the emissions from clothing production comes from three phases: dyeing and finishing (36%), yarn preparation (28%) and fibre production (15%). 29. About 1,900 synthetic plastic microfibers per garment are released when washed and due to its tiny sizes and shapes, aren’t caught in waste water treatment and enter our oceans. (Choice 2014), 25. But this need to stay ‘on trend’ is having an impact on the environment and society at large. The fashion industry’s operating model is exacerbating the problem by stepping up the pace of design and production. Eco Warrior Princess. With over 2,000 wholesale businesses, the Fashion District is a creative hub that’s always happening. 19. (WRAP 2011), 16. Good On You publishes the world’s most comprehensive ratings of fashion brands’ impact on people, the planet and animals. Cotton is one of the most commonly used fabrics when it comes to the fast fashion industry. 60% of clothes are made of synthetic materials derived from petrochemicals. UK disposes of 350,000 tonnes (£140 million worth) of clothing in landfills every year. (Choice 2014), 8. Find her on LinkedIn and Medium. In the UK, the estimated average lifetime for a garment of clothing is 2.2 years, or just under two years and three months. As much as the latter might be technically “organic”, the unsustainable production process often diminishes that statement. Love this post? (YouGov 2017), 62. For more information, click here. As the industry of fast fashion grows, our ideas on what is fresh and socially acceptable to wear also face a massive transformation. Fast fashion retailers have made their name by giving us a chance to buy cheaply made pieces that look like designer clothes for next to nothing. (McKinsey 2016), 26. Statistically, tonnes of fast fashion items are being thrown away every year. By thinking of the garments we wear as short term tools rather than long term investments, we contribute to wasteful consumption patterns that inevitably lead us towards drastic climate change. In 2019, retail ecommerce sales throughout the world amounted to $3.53 trillion. Some of the main sources of carbon emissions along fashion supply chains are things like pumping water to irrigate crops (like cotton), the harvesting machinery, general transport, and those pesky oil-based pesticides—all of which are inevitably increased in the notoriously overproducing world of fast fashion. 47. 4% of what Australians spend on clothing goes to the wages of workers in garment factories across the globe. Copyright © 2010-2018. The global apparel and footwear industry accounts for 8% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions releasing  four metric gigatonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere. Ethical Fashion 101: The Top 5 Ethical Issues in the Fashion Industry”, Ethical Fashion 101: The Top 5 Ethical Issues in the Fashion Industry, Get Educated With These Free Sustainable Fashion and Ethical Business Online Courses, 4 Must-See Short Online Films on The Topic of Fast Fashion, 32 Thought-Provoking Quotes About Ethical, Sustainable and Fast Fashion, The Sustainable Fashion Blueprint Report 2018: Industry Overview and Business Opportunities, How to Create More Storage Space in a Tiny Garden Shed, How to Turn Leftover Wine Corks into Mini Succulent Planters, 10 Ways to Style Your Indoor Space with Plants, Flowers and Greenery, 'Eco' Perfection Doesn't Exist. But their sales techniques are having a drastic impact on consumer behaviour around the world. Use our Directory to search more than 2,000 brands. The fashion industry’s CO2 emissions are projected to increase to nearly 2.8 billion tons per year by 2030— equivalent to the emissions of 230 million passenger vehicles driven for a year. (Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2017). Americans consume nearly 20 billion garments a year, equivalent to 62 garments each. By 2030, it is predicted that the fashion industry will use 35% more land for cotton, forest for cellulose fibres, and grassland for livestock. (Browne et al. (Lenzing 2017), 34. (Textile Beat 2016), 9. Good on people,the planet and animals.Good on you. 48. (McKinsey 2016), 21. 1.4 quadrillion microfibres are estimated to be in the ocean as a result of laundering clothes. Many low-cost clothing stores offer new designs every … Nearly three-fifths or 60% of all clothing produced ends up in incinerators or landfills within a year of being made. Looking for alternative, more sustainable fabric options, is integral for improving the impact of the fashion industry. One way to combat the huge amounts of waste generated by these fabrics is to invest in clothes made from recycled plastic. 2021’s Online Sales Statistics You Need to Know. Australia is the second-largest consumers of new textiles, each person buying an average of 27kg of new textiles. Life in a world where our wardrobes can be upgraded with a couple of new pieces for the price of breakfast makes us neglect the terrible reality of fast fashion. When she’s not in front of the screen, she reads, relishes traditional food, practices yoga, travels, and enjoys life! (Julian Cribb ‘The Coming Famine‘ 2010). In 2010, after studying Fashion Business, she launched Eco Warrior Princess to explore her interests in fashion, politics, social justice and sustainability. In reality, little to no retailers focus on making production transparent and eco-friendly. It is our duty as consumers to look a little deeper to ensure that our hard-earned cash is going to companies we want to support. (World Resources Institute 2017). Collection launches are no longer seasonal; the replacement of clothing inventories has become much more frequent. 28. Jennifer is also the founder of The Social Copywriter, a digital agency harnessing the power of copywriting and content marketing to help mindful businesses reach more people. You know, like its much nicer counterpart, slow fashion. 53. Yikes. The average Australian consumer spends $2,288 on clothing and footwear per year. (YouGov 2017), 65. Enjoyed this post & want to show your gratitude? All images courtesy of Unsplash. Over 50% of workers within the fashion industry are not paid the minimum wage in countries like India and the Philippines. Fast fashion factories are often dangerous for workers. 49. Clothing production doubled from 2000 to 2014. (Global Fashion Agenda 2017), 4. To make the fast fashion industry eco-friendly, it needs to focus on quality rather than quantity. (McKinsey 2016). (Textile Beat 2016), 11. Read on to discover some hard fast fashion facts and statistics—we guarantee you’ll put down that $10 t-shirt and back away slowly in case it bites.