Week 3: Fast Fashion, Counterfeit Consumption, Demand of Luxury

Grace Petersen
ASA 141
Week 3: Fast Fashion, Counterfeit Consumption, Demand of Luxury

This week we are delving into the world of luxury and designer fashion, and it's even more omnipresent offspring: Fast Fashion. Under capitalism, it should come as no surprise that our gluttony and lust for all the latest designer would naturally increase, but the seemingly unforeseen consequence of that is manifested in both the ecological impact of fast fashion brands such as H&M and the widespread proliferation of counterfeiting. Under capitalism, and particularly under the manifestation we are in known as late capitalism, raw materials are no longer the most important sector of the market. What takes its place instead is the service and consumer end, marked both by the increase in quantity and choice of goods as well as the overabundance of service and professional jobs. Under this economy, fashion producers naturally drift to the modes of production which increase their profit margins, and this manifests itself in consumers as "Seemingly adept at compartmentalism, and free of conflicted guilt, such consumers see no contradiction in their Janus-faced desires." (Joy et al.). The descriptor of the roman god is apt for not only the consumer, but this market as well.

(Image credit: textiletoday.com.bd)

Under the model of fast fashion with its within monthly turn-around from designer to department store, the amount of options afforded to consumers can feel overwhelming if they do not stay entirely on top of trends. This results in consumers and retailers who must buy in to the shorter and shorter life cycle of the current fashion trend or end up consumed by the array of clothing, accessories, and other fashion items surrounding our daily lives. This is not only a metaphorical disaster, but as well it manifests in ecological impacts due to the ever-increasing demands of the retail market which pushes production of raw materials into such overdrive that it threatens natural habitats and those who live in these places around the world.

Quote taken from Fast Fashion, Sustainability, and the Ethical Appeal of Luxury Brands