Fast fashion is one of the largest contributors to ocean pollution, rainforest destruction, and landfill waste out there. It's a term used to describe fashion that is made cheaply - often at the expense of poorly-paid workers in poorer countries - and shipped across the globe to be sold for low prices in places like Primark, H&M, Zara, and Uniqlo.
Many of these brands have been accused of awful working conditions, poor product quality, and promoting overconsumption, and that's without even getting into the textiles themselves - pesticides used in cotton farms, microplastics from polyester, and the long-term biodegradability of these fabrics. Of course, the burden can't wholly be placed on the consumer to make informed and conscious choices towards more ethical and sustainable clothing - fast fashion is popular because it's affordable, after all. Right now, it's up to the companies to make the biggest change.
In an attempt to lead a "worldwide initiative towards a more sustainable fashion future", H&M has just announced a partnership with Maisie Williams (Game of Thrones) to encourage the reuse, remaking and recycling of clothing, in order to "close the loop in fashion".
"The long term goal is to use 100 percent recycled or other sustainably sourced materials for textiles across the full H&M Group brands by 2030.
It’s time to take action and create more viable production circuits in fashion to protect our planet for the next generation.”
- Maisie Williams
As part of the promotion of H&M's new garment recycling machine, Looop, the company has teamed up with Animal Crossing: New Horizons to create a fashion-focused, tailor-made island in the game. According to the press release, players will be able to recycle their old outfits into new ones on the island, although it's not clear how that will work.
Maisie herself will even be making an appearance on Looop Island, together with Pascal Brun, the Global Sustainability Manager at H&M, on the 13th of April (which is today).
What are your feelings on fast fashion? Let us know in the comments.
Comments 20
So did they actually team up with Nintendo, or are they just using the game to promote their brand?
I thought Nintendo said no using ACNH for promotions?
As a Maisie Williams fan I appreciate the GoT mention and not The New Mutants, which I watched Sunday night and it is in my top 5 list of worst movies I've ever watched. So. Bad.
And this coming from someone who liked Dark Phoenix.
Yes! this game didn't have enough virtue signaling before, this will fix that!
Anything that helps people see the light when it comes to these brands, I’m on board with. It’s possible to shop cheaply while still shopping sustainably.
@FroZtedFlakerZz They put out a policy for it, but I'm unsure if they actually teamed up or if they're just breaking that policy.
@nessisonett I just hope that this is an actual effort to reduce waste and pollution, and not just PR spin!
@KateGray Well yeah, I’d honestly have thought H&M would be just as complicit as brands like ASOS.
@KateGray unfortunately it’s a very poor attempt at putting a sustainable front on. Their actual practices have a long long way to go, as have all the brands who are launching these types of campaigns.
H&M apparently have a terrible reputation in terms of how they treat the workers making their clothes.
@rjejr really? Is that bad? I mean, I’ve avoided to see it cause, I don’t know, something felt weird with that movie, there was something that just didn’t called me to see it.
I'd wager that their stance on sweatshop labour won't change though.
@Screen Dude... like okay. It is a major issue in general that workers do not get paid enough and the fashion industry has been put on blast since the late-80s about their use of overseas labor. That is why there is a huge push in North America regarding "Made in America" or "Made in Canada" campaigns a lot of clothing companies use.
I for one think it's great that Animal Crossing can help people go to thrift stores, learn how to sew or even purchase more expensive outfits made by North American and European workers in order to help with pollution and reduce "sweatshops" and exploitation of overseas workers.
@Silly_G That is why you should go to thrift stores. Outside of it just being cheaper we should be recycling our fashion! And learning to sew is a great way to learn a new skill and reduce our dependency on big box stores that use sweatshops.
@rjejr I was really hoping for that movie to be good, since I'm a bigtime X-Men dork, and I absolutely love the New Mutants comics (though I still haven't read up to the part where Cable is introduced) But I haven't talked to anyone who actually enjoyed it. Its such a shame since that was Fox's last shot at Marvel properties.
I'm just hoping that whatever Disney does with the X-Men franchise, they stay away from the leather-daddy aesthetics from the first movies.
I just wear the same cloths until they get a hole, no need to spend money on fashion that'll get old in six months.
@Desrever Just laid out most of my thoughts on this below, but I'm not a fan of the comics so maybe you'll like it. Illiyana and Lockheed were the only ones I really know, mostly from the Inferno storyline, and I did like them. I wasn't expecting much, but I was expecting something that looked like a movie - it kind of looked like a group of drunk friends had a phone, and a cheap one at that, and no money for actors, or for special effects.
Feel like I've already seen this movie several times and it's always been better. Worst part, they keep showing scenes from Buffy (TV version) that the movie is mimicking, but Buffy did it like 100x better, they're just embarrassing themselves. I don't understand how it got made or released as is. 🤷
@JeanPaul To be fair my wife said it wasn't as horrible as she expected, so I suppose it wasn't a complete unmitigated disaster, but I just couldn't suspend my disbelief. The last 10 minute fight scene wasn't that bad, but everything leading up to it, well, too much wrong, I hardly no where to begin.
I've never been a New Mutants fan, just read the crossover issues from Fall of the Mutants and/or Inferno (when they released over 30 years ago) so I'm not going by that.
You ever see a movie called Sucker Punch? Watch that instead. Or The Breakfast Club.
Buy a new piece of clothing once a decade. That's my solution to "sustainable fashion".
It sustainably annoys people who care about fashion too, which is a nice bonus.
It’s definitely up to the big brands to take major steps ~ this is a start H&M.....keep it going
So what- I visit dump some vests and uggo clothes that villagers gifted me and I get new stuff? Or is it exclusive stuff to her island? 🤔
A company that makes its money by selling cheap, poorly made, trendy clothes wants us to know that it truly, deeply cares about sustainability. Yes, I believe that almost as much as I believe McDonald's cares about our health.
Really good PR, though.
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