Opinion: Thrifting is not our savior
Photo by Unsplash.
There’s nothing quite like spending hours in your local thrift store, waiting for that moment when the stars align and you unearth a gorgeous piece buried in piles of grandma blouses. The piece that screams your name and tells you it was meant to be. In that moment, anything is possible and the world is a good place. You can buy it, pick yourself up an oat milk latte, and be happy in the belief that sustainability and fashion can co-exist in your life.
Before you congratulate yourself too much on being an eco-warrior fighting the fast fashion monster, I’m here to tell you, thrifting may not be the save-all solution we’ve been made to believe it is.
It’s no secret that fast fashion is wreaking absolute havoc on both the environment and human rights. A study from Princeton found that the fashion industry uses a tenth of all the water used industrially, 35% of all microplastics in the ocean come from synthetic materials used in these clothes and landfills all around the world are piled high with discarded garments.
Not to mention the exploitation of women and children for cheap labor under shockingly bad working conditions.
In protest of the unethical and unsustainable practices of fast fashion companies, Gen Z’ers have taken to thrifting. Shopping at the Salvation Army, Goodwill and local second-hand stores, teenagers are increasingly opting for donated clothes and accessories.
A popular thrift store in Chicago’s Rogers Park neighborhood, Green Element Resale, has seen an uptick in traffic in recent years.
“God, it’s increased dramatically. We’re a destination now,” said Bill, who has been at the front desk of Green Element for over 11 years. “People come from the Loop, Southside, north suburbs. They come from all over, just to come here.”
When it comes to environmental ethics, thrifting is a great way to reduce waste and practice sustainable fashion without breaking the bank. It also helps that you’re not giving money to the companies destroying the planet.
“Everyone is starting to realize the advantage to shopping resale. It’s a bargain for whoever buys,” Bill said.
When it comes to fashion, thrifting is a great way to develop your unique style rather than blending in with the mass-produced masses. A lot of creativity has been born out of thrifting interesting pieces and “flipping” them, breathing new life into old gems.
Sounds great right? Not quite.
Its growing popularity has turned thrifting from something that is done when needed by lower-income communities to a hobby for bored middle-class people. Leaving aside the trend of thrifting clothes for cheap and reselling them for a profit on platforms like DePop, the obsession with thrifting is not an act of sustainability.
To be clear, it is the obsession, not the thrifting that is at issue.
People are buying more “stuff” than ever before. Most affordable things are very low quality, so they end up needing replacement more frequently. The trends are moving at break-neck speed, so what was fashionable two months ago is now cringey. Products get cheaper, more accessible, poorer quality, and round and round it goes. The industry of convincing-people-they-need-more-stuff is the backbone of this country, and increasingly, the world.
YouTube and TikTok are flooded with people showing off their “hauls” – Zara, Black Friday, Salvation Army, whatever it may be. Teenagers and young adults are spending hundreds of dollars every month on new clothes and shoes. So, it doesn’t matter that you’ve replaced your SHEIN hauls with thrift hauls if those clothes end up discarded after a few wears anyway.
The popular argument is that thrifting remains the most ethical alternative to fast fashion, along with being more practical than brands who market themselves as sustainable fashion and which tend to cost significantly more. But what is so ethical about ransacking your local Goodwill of all the nice items so you can rebuild your wardrobe for the third time that year, leaving the people who actually rely on thrift stores with the scraps?
Maybe the majority of people aren’t guilty of gentrifying thrifting (though that issue is also gaining traction). Most people are there with the best of intentions, looking for ways to avoid fast fashion. But, without introspection there can be no change. And when you look, you’ll find the real enemy is overconsumption. Our need to consume is facilitated by the very fabric (no pun intended) of this community, from clever marketing tactics to the decreasing quality of products. This culture of overconsumption is what created the fast fashion monster to begin with, and it is the same one that is now finding a home in thrift stores.
The world is facing a climate crisis. And unfortunately, fashion has become a massive contributor to that. While thrifting may not be inherently problematic, the belief that it is our savior from fast fashion is. What is actually needed is a fundamental shift in thinking, and a move away from overconsumption in all its forms, towards frugality and simple living.
