I often have people reach out asking me to speak or to do a quick interview about me and my business. This year, I started with Chance Seales from Newsy’s “The Why” about the impact of fast-fashion my business. Take a look at the video here for a quick intro and find my extended opinion on this topic below.
Fast-fashion retailers like Zara, H&M, and Forever 21 have fundamentally changed the retail industry. They have made it more difficult for smaller shops to stay in business and have forced larger retailers to change the way they operate. To compete with how quickly runway looks are translated to the rack, traditional retailers who have maintained between 2-4 production cycles per year have needed to augment the design and production to continually have “fresh product” at all times. Due to their young demographic fast-fashion also pushed the online shopping revolution, which has absolutely adjusted how I work with clients.
Fast-fashion also incorporated online shopping sooner and usually more seamlessly into their operations, while traditional retailers were slower to change their business models which resulted in clunky sites and service. However, online shopping developed exponentially online – faster than expected. Now, with nearly all retailers online, there is more inventory to choose from than ever before. While the merchandise may move quicker, the shopping can often take longer with so many options to sort through. Online shopping is wonderful for research, selection, and price comparison but this does not necessarily do away with time in-store with my clients. Instead I use both methods simultaneously. Time in-store with clients is precious and can be some of the most productive a lot of magic happens when I am with my client in a dressing room or a fitting. The personal aspect of being with them to see things on them and the ability to fine tune style, fit, or price on the spot is priceless. Furthermore, knowing the product in real life is invaluable as it removes a lot of the guesswork inherent with shopping online.
It’s undeniable that fast-fashion offers clothing at an affordable price. The sad fact is that the low price can lure consumers into a cycle of consumption and people end up buying more things, instead of the right things. My approach as a stylist is to find and get clients into the right items the first time in order to reduce consumption and waste. Of course I prefer beautiful quality garments that fit well and will last a long time, but when quality garments are cost prohibitive, I guide clients hold fast to other requirements of fit and style. It is possible to find the right style of a white blouse, for example, that fits well and has a nice cut at many different price points. Indeed, you could find dozens in a day, but you shouldn’t necessarily get the first one you see. Check if it flatters, is it the right white for you, does it hang well, will it work with your other pieces, can you handle the care instructions, etc. Really the one question you have to answer is: Do you LOVE it? I’ve had to throw away so many almosts from closets – and the waste in money, time spent making and finding, and then ignoring – only to be thrown away nearly makes me ill. And the endless cycles of consumerism instigated by cheap clothing has turned the fashion into the second biggest polluter in the world next to oil.
The real truth is LOVED CLOTHES LAST. If you love an item, no matter the cost, you will wear it and take care of it. So when you can’t get the runway top you were hoping for – don’t succumb to the first knock off you see throw all the other requirements out the window. So while I don’t frequent places like Forever 21, H&M, and Zara because they rarely provide the level of quality I’m looking for for my clients it doesn’t mean you can’t find what you’re looking for if you are careful. Indeed, they also have an occasional WOW piece too. In fact, I just recently purchased a pair of jeans from H&M’s Conscious line that fit awesome and the color is divine. I truly love them. And that is everything. With this all being said, as a growing business, I want to be able to evolve with and accommodate my clients however they prefer. So with the change of fast-fashion comes the ever-evolving technological side of it. This I welcome, for it allows the consumer to have more access to me and my services as well as constantly reinforces a streamlined process for myself and my clients. Aside from the downsides that fast-fashion may cause for my business, there are upsides. (Evolving with the consumer, more access to what they need/however they prefer to work, want to be able to accommodate) One of the main ones being that with the ever-evolving technological side of fast-fashion, I have to evolve with it.
