Alternative shopping habits offering a sustainable future for fashion. Fashion is primary to society’s culture and personal expression, however we are well aware of it’s negative impact on the environment and on large and small communities.
Here I offer some shopping habits to adopt that are convenient and you can adapt to your lifestyle, as an alternative to the fast fashion model.
Rent instead of buy
For those who may have a big occasion or special event renting can be a perfect substitute to buying with benefits including; less key resources used, less harmful toxins produced, lower Co2 footprint, less waste and more wardrobe space. Renting clothing also allows you to indulge the fashion pieces you really want in a cheaper and guilt free way. GlamCorner is one of Australia’s most well known clothing rental companies, offering pieces from multiple National and International Designers, the website is easy to navigate and there are varying memberships to suit your needs.
Or try Sharing
Australian based company Coclo was founded on the basis of clothes sharing to create a more planet friendly way to expand and update your wardrobe. Coclo’s peer to peer concept makes it easy to find new outfits and share existing pieces; by centralising all of these shared items in one location to create capsule collections. On Coclo each capsule collection has been pre styled and curated by their team of Stylists to save you the fuss.
It is worth mentioning that renting or sharing clothes will still create a carbon footprint due to production and professional laundering, however it is a much more sustainable alternative if you are purchasing items you’ll only wear once or twice.
Buy second hand
Inception of French company Vestiaire Collective began as a way to extend the lifespan of no longer worn Designer items - rather than sit at the back of the wardrobe or become landfill waste. Vestiaire allows users to sell their unworn pieces, adhering to a strict authentication process, to upload items meaning customers trust their purchase will be Brand quality. It’s a really convenient way to shop second hand if you’re searching for a specific item or if you are seeking Designer pieces at lower price points than you would find in store.
Another great way to shop second hand is by visiting local Opportunity or Charity Shops, this has the added benefit that your money will be helping a good cause.
Buy from a sustainable Marketplace
Save yourself a heap of time trawling through pages of sustainable designers that may not be your ideal style and visit an online marketplace that is aligned with sustainable values, one great site for this is Well Made Clothes. They have a curated Menswear and Womenswear range which you can filter to search by value or product.
What are some of your favourite ways to shop sustainably? Let me know in the comment section below Thanks for reading! *Images used above do not belong to this site, if you own copyright and do not wish for images to appear on this site, please contact via contact form*