Zara Austin

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People

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One of the four pillars is ‘People,’ and according to Carlsen, the pillar aims to ‘end poverty in all forms and ensure dignity and equality’ (Carlsen, 2023), expressing the importance of inclusivity. A prime example of this is shown within the issue of gender stereotypes in comparison to the modern approach focus of diversity. Mulvey’s theory of ‘the male gaze’ (1975) explains the objectification of women and how their physicality’s are used to attract a male audience. An experiment conducted by Fredrickson, Roberts, Noll, Quinn, & Twenge (1997) explored the different reactions people had when wearing a swimsuit in comparison to a jumper, which resulted to ‘only women’ facing ‘self-objectification and increased body shame’ leading to psychological issues such as ‘restrained eating’. Insecurities could also be created through social media since the rise of online platforms in the 2000’s and the representations of body and fashion ideals being more accessible than ever. Gottlieb (2001) found that during this time, ‘more than 670 000 liposuction procedures were performed’ in America alone as well as ‘about 244,000 facelifts’- seen as cosmetic surgeries (aren’t health related). The ASPS ‘2020 Plastic Surgery Report’ expressed the continuation of the gender difference as ‘92% of all cosmetic procedures’ were carried upon the female audience in comparison to the ‘8%’ of men. Later, Adam & Galinsky’s theory of ‘enclothed cognition’ (2012) explored the idea that clothes and the way we look do in fact effect humans psychologically, which supports humans need for physical change to this day. 

Model of State Self-objectification in Women. [Digital Image]. (2018). Experimental Studies on State Self-Objectification: A Review and an Integrative Process Model – PMC (nih.gov)

Plastic Surgery Statistics Report. [Digital Image]. (2020). 2020 Plastic Surgery Statistics Report

Despite the negative appearance impacts of social media, the internet has allowed better communication, which is an important skill within the Gen Z demographic and fashion business. The language of fashion aims to be inclusive and sustainable to be successful and can only achieve this through the feedback of its consumers. Moran explored the different attributes in which Gen Z has impacted fashion and found that ‘61.6%… say they are familiar with the concept of the metaverse, compared with 39.5% of millennials’, which influenced companies such as Balenciaga to collaborate with digital games like Fortnite. Brands are advised to consider investing within the metaverse as it ‘could be an £627bn market opportunity by 2024’ (Moran, 2022). 

Benefits of using Social Media in the Fashion Industry. [Digital Image]. (N.D). https://bulk.ly/social-media-in-the-fashion-industry/

Fortnite X Balenciaga. [Digital Image]. (2021). https://www.fortnite.com/news/high-digital-fashion-drops-into-fortnite-with-balenciaga

Gen Z has influenced companies to change, as 10% make more effort to be ethical (Smith, 2020). For Example, Koi Footwear, a popular vegan footwear brand, which uses a ‘eco-friendly waterborne coating technique’ and ‘cuts energy consumption by 55%’ saving ‘95%’ of water, gained popularity with their inclusivity through their wide range of styles paired with affordable prices, allowing those who cannot afford more luxury sustainable items fulfil their ethical needs.  

Koi Footwear: Our Edits Style List . [Digital Image]. (2023). https://www.koifootwear.com/

word count = 437 (10% leniency)

References:

Adam, H., & Galinsky, A. D. (2012). Enclothed cognition. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 48(4), 918–925. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2012.02.008

Admin. (2023). What is “Enclothed Cognition?” Henry a. Davidsen. https://henrydavidsen.com/what-is-enclothedcognition/#:~:text=Defining%20Enclothed%20Cognition,that%20in%20the%20next%20section).

Carlsen, L. (2023). The state of the ‘People’ pillar by 2022 A partial ordering-based analysis of the sustainable development goals 1–5. World Development Sustainability, 2, 100071. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wds.2023.100071

Directo-Meston, D. (2021, September 21). The Hollywood Reporter. The Hollywood Reporter. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lifestyle/shopping/balenciaga-fortnite-fashion-collection-1235017456/

Fredrickson, B. L., Roberts, T., Noll, S. M., Quinn, D. M., & Twenge, J. M. (1998). That swimsuit becomes you: Sex differences in self-objectification, restrained eating, and math performance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 75(1), 269–284. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.75.1.269

García‐Ortega, B., Galán-Cubillo, J., Montes, F. J. L., & De Miguel Molina, B. (2023). Sufficient consumption as a missing link toward sustainability: The case of fast fashion. Journal of Cleaner Production, 399, 136678. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.136678

Gottlieb, S. (2001, March 3). Plastic surgery rockets as baby boomers search for youth and beauty. PubMed Central (PMC). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1174731/#:~:text=More%20than%20670%20000%20liposuction,from%2037%20000%20in%201990).

Jackson, L. M. (2023, July 14). The Invention of “the Male Gaze.” The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/books/second-read/the-invention-of-the-male-gaze

Kahalon, R., Shnabel, N., & Becker, J. C. (2018). Experimental Studies on State Self-Objectification: A review and an Integrative Process model. Frontiers in Psychology, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01268

Maguire, L. (2021, September 20). Balenciaga launches on Fortnite: What it means for luxury. Vogue Business. https://www.voguebusiness.com/technology/balenciaga-launches-on-fortnite-what-it-means-for-luxury

Moran, G. (2022, May 10). Gen Z and Millennials 2022 – Drapers. Drapers. https://www.drapersonline.com/guides/gen-z-and-millennials-2022

Ortiz-Ospina, E. (2023, May 25). The rise of social media. Our World in Data. https://ourworldindata.org/rise-of-social-media#:~:text=Social%20media%20started%20in%20the,media%20as%20we%20know%20it.

Xafis, V., Schaefer, G. O., Labude, M. K., Zhu, Y., & Hsu, L. Y. (2020). The perfect moral storm: Diverse ethical considerations in the COVID-19 pandemic. Asian Bioethics Review, 12(2), 65–83. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41649-020-00125-3

Young, A. (2022, June 17). How to use social media in the fashion industry to launch new styles | Bulkly. Bulkly. https://bulk.ly/social-media-in-the-fashion-industry/

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Planet Week Blog

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Although change is argued to be one of the most important focuses within the fashion industry, due to its negative effects on the planet, the cognitive dissonance theory supports the reality of human behaviour in contrast to their personal belief and ethics. For example, NielsenIQ (2023) found that 78% of US consumers, which is around 214.281mm, state that “a sustainable lifestyle is important” to them, which juxtaposes their habits as H&M, a fast fashion brand, has over 520 stores in the US alone. Through the convenient form of fast fashion (mass production due to the industrial revolution), business such as Shein (74.7mm users (2022)) and Temu (104.2mm US users (April 2023)) have become prominent online fashion companies. Temu states they are sustainable as they “offset carbon emissions” for every delivery made however, they fail to mention how this is achieved. Offsetting has no impact unless renewable energy sources are used, while the energy resources used within Temu’s products cycle remain the same, just carried out in separate places. Due to consumer demand, fast fashion companies remain unsustainable through their high production rate, which leads to water pollution, landfill and the release of CO2 contributing to global warming. According to McKinsey, the industry should be aiming to cut down on carbon emissions with a 50% target by 2030, as currently textile production releases 1.2 tonnes of CO2 a year and is one of the main contributions to the carbon emission issue.

Shein Total Users – Business Of Apps 2022
Temu Total Users – Investors Business Daily 2023
Number of online consumers – Statistica 2023

A circular economy, which was first introduced by Viktor Schauberger (1938), has the aim to ensure that products are used to their maximum potential, without negative impacts such as landfill. Patrick McDowell (2023) is a prime example which does this, using ‘reclaimed fabrics’ and ‘ethically produced materials with a low carbon footprint in mind’, to ensure that every collection is long lasting. Furthermore, Patrick’s brand allows an afterlife care system which involves consistent communication with the consumer- allowing them to return the piece and have it altered to a preferred piece, ensuring the circulation of the products life cycle is continuous.

Patrick McDowell’s Collection ’Climbing Families’ – Vogue 2019

Sustainability within the fashion industry is aimed to be done through the ‘17 SDGs’ (Sustainable Development Goals) developed by The United Nations (2015). One of the key SDGS is goal 12: ‘Responsible Consumption and Production’, expressing the importance of environmental impacts the fashion industry has on the planet. 95% of discarded clothes can be recycled and therefore despite the current negative effects of fashion within the planet, through a circular economy like structure as well as the use of the SDGs, it is possible through patience and consistency to create a more sustainable future within the industry. 

17 SDGs – The United Nations 2015
Goal 12 of the 17 SDGs – 2023

Word count: 438 (8.67% over word count limit)

Bibliography: 

Berg, A., Granskog, A., Lee, L., & Magnus, K. (2020). Fashion on climate. In McKinsey & Company. https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/fashion-on-climate

De Falco, F., Di Pace, E., Cocca, M., & Avella, M. (2019). The contribution of washing processes of synthetic clothes to microplastic pollution. Scientific Reports, 9(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-43023-x

Fashion for Good. (2022, June 24). REUSE – fashion for good. https://fashionforgood.com/take-action-change-fashion/reuse/#:~:text=Even%20though%20~95%25%20of%20discarded,new%20life%20into%20old%20clothes.

Goal 12 | Department of Economic and Social Affairs. (n.d.). https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal12

H&M Group: number of stores U.S. 2022 | Statista. (2023, September 14). Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1092733/number-of-stores-us-h-and-m/#:~:text=In%202022%2C%20the%20H%26M%20Group,operation%20throughout%20the%20United%20States

Igini, M. (2023). How to recognise fast fashion brands and which ones to avoid. Earth.Org. https://earth.org/fast-fashion-brands-to-avoid/#:~:text=H%26M%20is%20a%20fast%20fashion,can%20sell%20and%20promotes%20overconsumption.

Joy, A., Sherry, J. F., Venkatesh, A., Wang, J. J., & Chan, R. Y. K. (2012). Fast fashion, sustainability, and the ethical appeal of luxury brands. Fashion Theory, 16(3), 273–295. https://doi.org/10.2752/175174112×13340749707123

Kumar, A. (2023). What is Sustainable Fashion? Why Does it Matter and How to Achieve it. Emeritus Online Courses. https://emeritus.org/blog/sustainability-sustainable-fashion/#:~:text=Sustainable%20clothing%20uses%20biodegradable%20components,carbon%20footprint%20of%20these%20brands.

Martin. (2018, June 20). United Nations sustainable development agenda. United Nations Sustainable Development. https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/development-agenda-retired/#:~:text=On%201%20January%202016%2C%20the,Summit%20%E2%80%94%20officially%20came%20into%20force.

NielsenIQ. (2022, February 15). Inside look: How NielsenIQ uses data to help CPG leaders win at e-commerce – NIQ. NIQ. https://nielseniq.com/global/en/insights/analysis/2020/inside-look-how-nielsen-uses-data-to-help-cpg-leaders-win-at-e-commerce/

Patrick McDowell. (n.d.). Sustainability. Patrickmcdowell. https://patrickmcdowell.co.uk/pages/sustainability

Quest Impact Design Studio. (2022, June 29). Fashion on Climate – Global Fashion Agenda. Global Fashion Agenda. https://globalfashionagenda.org/fashion-on-climate/

Riemens, J., Lemieux, A., Lassagne, M., & Lamouri, S. (2023). Apprehending traceability implementation in support of sustainable value chains: A novel analysis framework for the fashion industry. Journal of Cleaner Production, 414, 137501. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.137501

Rizos, V. &. T. K. &. B. A. (2017). The Circular Economy: A review of definitions, processes and impacts. ideas.repec.org.https://ideas.repec.org/p/eps/cepswp/12440.html

The History of the Circular Economy | Arrive Platform. (n.d.). https://thearriveplatform.com/updates/the-history-of-the-circular-economy#:~:text=In%20the%201970s%2C%20circularity%20started,transition%20towards%20a%20sustainable%20economy

The role of psychology in building a more sustainable society. (2021, August 11). LSE Psychological & Behavioural Science. https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/psychologylse/2021/05/17/the-role-of-psychology-in-building-a-more-sustainable-society/

Trollman, H., & Trollman, F. (2020). A sustainability assessment of smart innovations for mass production, mass customisation and direct digital manufacturing. In IntechOpen eBooks. https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88897

Vilaça, J. (2022, April 14). How The Industrial Revolution Changed Fashion. Fashinnovation. https://fashinnovation.nyc/industrial-revolution-and-fashion/#:~:text=With%20the%20beginning%20of%20the,faster%20compared%20to%20manual%20work.

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Acne Studios

Acne Studios

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One of my favourite brands at the moment has to be Acne Studios, due to the designer, Jonny Jahanssons’ great attention to detail and use of incredibly textured materials and bold colours.

As a member of the FWF, Acne Studios has an annual ”Brand Performance Check”, which asses the purchasing decisions as well as the factory conditions tracking the strengths and weaknesses of the company. From this, the company has been founded to, when working with new suppliers, ensure that the Code of Labour Practicesis signed (Figure. 1). This allows the company to become sustainable and aware of the people who are creating their products. I appreciate this because a lot of companies lack to see the ethical importance of fairness in factories and usually only focus on how much it’ll cost them. Furthermore, Acne also goes to the extent of having wage checks within their production locations, further checking that every person is paid correctly. 

As well as the materials used being recyclable, Acne have also worked with dead-stock materials themselves and created a capsule titled “Repurposed”, which featured a “Scandinavian minimalist style tweed and denim”.  This featured a skirt (Figure. 2) , shirt (Figure. 3) and jacket (Figure. 4) made out of a combination of different eye catching materials.

Overall, the brand is sustainably ethical which is important to me. Their pieces motivate me to wear more colour and I am fascinated by every new item I see by them. 

Figure 1. FWF report of Acne Studios (March 2023)
Figure 2. Dead-stock Skirt (2021)
Figure 3. Dead-stock Shirt (2021)
Figure 4. Dead-stock Denim Jacket (2021)

Bibliography:

Talon, K. (2021, Jan). Acne Studios presents the new capsule made with dead-stock fabrics. Dolce & Gabbana. https://www.nssgclub.com/en/fashion/24786/acne-studios-repurposed-capsule

Lakerveld, A. (2023, March). Brand Performance Checks: Acne Studios. Fair Wear. https://api.fairwear.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/BPC-Acne-Studios-2022.pdf

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