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Acuity Special Edition December/January 2023
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Story Joshua Gliddon
Fast fashion is cheap, trendy clothing which takes ideas from the catwalk or celebrities and quickly turns those ideas into garments which are often poorly made and thrown away after being worn a handful of times. Fast fashion is controversial because the garments are generally made from inexpensive fabrics such as polyester, which sheds microplastics when washed going into the wastewater and contributing to pollution in oceans and rivers. Worse, fast fashion is often made by people in developing nations who are badly paid and have unsafe work environments. According to The Guardian Australians throw away more than 500 million kilos of garments every year, which ends up in landfill, while a further 94 million kilos are exported. Scoop recently revealed more than 220,000 tonnes of textiles go to landfill in New Zealand every year.
Chartered accountants are getting involved in organisations aiming to reverse the impact of fast fashion – which refers to inexpensive, mass-produced designer knock offs which have an enormous environmental footprint. Anthony Chesler CA is the chief executive officer of charity Thread Together, and Peter Pryn FCA is treasurer and financial controller of Ready Set (find out more below).
Five things:
Fast fashion
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“The idea of ‘slow fashion’ is also trending, showing more and more people are concerned about who makes their clothes and where those clothes come from.”
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Fast fashion is throw away fashion
Fast fashion is big business. IBIS World reports that in Australia, the fast fashion market was worth A$2.3 billion in 2022, with the overall market expected to grow 3.8% during the same period. But it could be that Australians are waking up to the environmental and social costs of fast fashion, with the industry declining 1% per year on average between 2017 and 2022 and the market size falling faster than the overall consumer goods and services sector. According to a 2019 Stuff article, New Zealand consumers spent NZ$3.6 billion on clothing and footwear on card transactions alone, which works out to be about NZ$750 per person.
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The environmental impact is huge
Forbes revealed cheap, trendy clothes have an outsized environmental impact. Nearly 70 million barrels of oil are used every year to make polyester fibre. These fibres take 200 years to decompose. Fast fashion garments worn five times or less produce 400% more carbon emissions per item per year than a garment worn 50 times.
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Consumers have choices
Consumers who are concerned about the environmental and social impacts of fast fashion have several choices. Buy higher quality, locally made garments which pay the people who sew them a living wage and have a lower environmental footprint than a fast fashion garment. Shopping for vintage and recycled clothes in op shops and through online marketplaces such as Depop gives garments a second life (or a third) and shopping this way means clothes aren’t being thrown away into landfill or exported to become another country’s problem. The idea of ‘slow fashion’ is also trending, showing more and more people are concerned about who makes their clothes and where those clothes come from.
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People are making a difference, including chartered accountants
Many retailers have introduced recycling programs such as Zara and H&M, which accepts clothes from any manufacturer for repurposing. Textiles such as cotton and wool are recycled into new garments, while hybrid textiles including polycotton are reused in automotive and similar applications. Two CAs are doing their bit for garment recycling and reuse. Peter Pryn FCA is treasurer and financial controller of Ready Set, which provides clothing, coaching and connections for the long-term unemployed, while Anthony Chesler CA, is CEO of Thread Together, which provides vulnerable Australians with new clothing and works to divert nearly one third of excess manufactured clothing from landfill.
Chief executive officer of charity Thread Together, Anthony Chesler CA at the company's HQ in Banksmeadow, Sydney.
Five things:
Fast fashion
The December – January digital issue of Acuity
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Australians and New Zealanders spend a lot on fast fashion
70 million barrels
70 million trees
8-10%
of oil are used every year to make polyester fibre
are logged every year to produce fabrics
of global carbon emissions come from the fast fashion industry
500 million kilos
Source: The Guardian
of garments are thrown away by Australians every year
220,000 tonnes
Source: Scoop
of textiles go to landfill in
New Zealand every year
A$2.3 billion
0.3%
Annual Growth
2018–2023
NZ$3.6 billion
Is spent by consumers in New Zealand on clothing and footwear on card transactions alone
In 2022, the Australian fast fashion market was worth
3.0%
Annual Growth
2023–2028
Acuity Special Edition December/January 2023
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Forests are also impacted, with more than 70 million trees logged every year to produce fabrics such as rayon and viscose. Even natural fibres have an environmental impact, with cotton using 24% of all insecticides and 11% of all pesticides globally.
Fast fashion shedding plastic microfibres also affects oceans and waterways, making fast fashion the second biggest polluter of freshwater resources on the planet and is also responsible for 8–10% of global carbon emissions – more than all international flights and maritime shipping combined.
Fast fashion is throw away fashion
According to The Guardian Australians throw away more than 500 million kilos of garments every year, which ends up in landfill, while a further 94 million kilos are exported. Scoop recently revealed more than 220,000 tonnes of textiles go to landfill in New Zealand every year.
Fast fashion is cheap, trendy clothing which takes ideas from the catwalk or celebrities and quickly turns those ideas into garments which are often poorly made and thrown away after being worn a handful of times. Fast fashion is controversial because the garments are generally made from inexpensive fabrics such as polyester, which sheds microplastics when washed going into the wastewater and contributing to pollution in oceans and rivers.
Australians and
New Zealanders spend a lot on fast fashion
Fast fashion is big business. IBIS World reports that in Australia, the fast fashion market was worth A$2.3 billion in 2022, with the overall market expected to grow 3.8% during the same period. But it could be that Australians are waking up to the environmental and social costs of fast fashion, with the industry declining 1% per year on average between 2017 and 2022 and the market size falling faster than the overall consumer goods and services sector. According to a 2019 Stuff article, New Zealand consumers spent NZ$3.6 billion on clothing and footwear on card transactions alone, which works out to be about NZ$750 per person.
Source: Stuff
Source: Forbes
Worse, fast fashion is often made by people in developing nations who are badly paid and have unsafe work environments. According to ‘The Guardian’ Australians throw away more than 500 million kilos of garments every year, which ends up in landfill, while a further 94 million kilos are exported. ‘Scoop’ recently revealed more than 220,000 tonnes of textiles go to landfill in New Zealand every year.
Source: IBIS World
Source: Stuff
Source: Forbes
Source: Forbes
Source: Forbes
Source: IBIS World
Source: Forbes
Source: Forbes
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