The Truth is that many of the brands we know and love have recently been categorized as fast fashion. People are wondering, is Cotton On fast fashion? You may be wondering what fast fashion even is. Fast fashion can most simply be defined as a business model that tries to chase trends through cheap overseas labor and low prices. Fashion and trends move very quickly, and fast fashion chases them at the expense of the workers. Many of us have likely bought fast fashion before, but many people are moving away from this. Fast fashion clothes are made cheaply and will fall apart on you very quickly producing waste that is harmful to the environment. If you’re anything like me you probably want good clothes that will last. Furthermore, fast fashion’s exploitation of foreign workers just doesn’t sit right with many of us.
Is Cotton On Fast Fashion?
Labeling a company as fast fashion is difficult because many companies fall somewhere on the spectrum. In my estimation, a company can be defined as fast fashion if they create cheaply made products overseas, follow trends quickly, and produce in large quantities. Let us compare Cotton to this criteria. Cotton On’s quality is often described as very average, potentially above average for the price. Cotton On’s factories are mainly based in China, with some in Bangladesh and India. You probably can already tell that that is two strikes against Cotton On. It is also obvious that Cotton On attempts to follow trends. One look at Cotton On’s website shows that they are on top of trends and have been for some time. Cotton has made recent efforts to amend workers’ wages, but it has been reported that many factories are not paying a proper minimum wage.
The Verdict
Is Cotton On Fast fashion? I would classify Cotton on as more Fast Fashion than not. Is Cotton On equivalent to a notorious fast fashion company like Shien? No, but when looking at the facts it is hard to deny that Cotton is basically a fast fashion brand. Cotton On utilizes cheap labor overseas and produces massive amounts of clothes quickly with an emphasis on trends. Furthermore, their clothes are fairly cheaply made and are unsustainable for the environment.
Final Thoughts
In our modern world of prevalent fast fashion, it is difficult to find brands that are both affordable and sustainable. It is unfortunate that Cotton On is not an exception to this, but fortunately, there are many other brands out there. When looking for places to shop for clothes, try and do some research to find where the clothes are made. You can check the tags on clothes to see this as well. Also, It is important to check for quality. Good clothes should be able to last us a long time, so feel the quality of clothes before purchasing. My final tip would be to find reputable trustworthy brands and choose to buy from them. For some more interesting trends take a look at Valentine Smocked Dress and other Easy and Affordable Styles. Also, check out some reporting on Cotton On’s Factories here.