The iconic 90’s movie, Clueless, starring Alicia Silverstone and Brittany Murphy
depicted the future of fashion as a touch screen wardrobe, where ordering the days
outfit is as simple as ordering your McMuffin and coffee.
We really are not that far from this becoming a reality in some shape or form. The
innovation that I like is that this interactive wardrobe won’t just hand you the clothes,
but will take measurements and construct your outfit right then and there for you.
Ensuring that the fit is perfect and unique to you!
The speed at which we are consuming fashion means that it is increasingly starting
to mirror the fast food industry. Mass production of items is happening quicker and
more cheaply because our appetite for instant gratification is stronger than ever.
When shopping we want the latest trends now, and the industry is clambering to
keep up with demand.
Fashion is a £52 trillion industry
The power that social media holds over driving purchases is quite amazing. A study
of social media influencers showed that 1 out of 10 buy clothes just for photoshoots
and then return them afterwards. (Reported by Hanna Kozlowska) Of course, this in turn
means that followers feel the need to purchase those items, regardless of how
unrealistic constant purchasing is. Fuelling the necessity that the fashion industry
provides quicker, cheaper clothes in record times.
Did you know… In 1980, the average consumer would purchase 12 new items of
clothing a year. We now purchase almost six times as much as that, with the
average shopper now buying 70 new items a year!
Did you know…that the average woman has enough clothing to last her six years
without buying a single new item. (So, how is it that I never have anything to wear?)
Did you know… that it takes 342 million barrels of oil per year to keep up with our
demand for new clothes. In comparison, we chuck away 92 million tons of clothes in
the same time frame. Now that is scary!
But it is not all doom and gloom. The fashion industry, like many of the other
consumable industries, are working to come up with solutions to guarantee a more
sustainable future. Fashion houses are working on incredible bio materials that are
being grown from things like algae, coffee grounds, fruit, sugars, mushrooms and
pineapple husk. They are literally going to be growing clothes. These materials can
be produced in an environmentally responsible way and can then be left to compost
and continue the cycle once not needed. This may be a little way off, but it is
certainly a step in the right direction.
If you would like to know more then watch The Future of Fashion on Netflix, it is an
eye opening documentary that focuses on designers efforts to create compostable
clothing, as well as being sustainable.
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