What is fast fashion? Fast fashion is a business model in which companies mass-produce inexpensive clothing, relying on quick and affordable production of trendy designs to satisfy consumer demand. It affects the fashion industry in terms of how fast the design and new clothing styles are on the market, encouraging consumers to chase and keep up with the trends constantly. They tend to discard items, or in the Philippine culture, they stock them in their home. Fast fashion has become a cycle in which consumers buy more and toss quickly. With this concept, it raises some environmental concerns in the fashion industry. 

 With the fashion industry 92 million tons of textile waste each year, fast fashion has become a central contributor to this environmental crisis (Circular, 2020). It is where textile and plastic waste is generated to produce new clothing that fits the trend that contributes to pollution and climate change. Where there is the use of much toxic waste that also affects our environment, the excessive use of natural resources is also influenced by how natural resources are depleted and cannot keep up with the “fast” of fashion. It is also advertised as fast and cheap, so how do big companies and expensive brands do it? It is by exploiting workers and less-developed countries to create quick and affordable products where they are using workers with heavy work with less income they earn. 

 The recent pandemic has further fueled the rise of fast fashion as people like to shop online, like Shopee, Lazada, and more focus stores, like SHEIN. Alarmingly, experts predict that there will be a 50% surge in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. If fast fashion is still a trend today, the adverse effects will continue to deepen, posing a significant threat to sustainable environmental practices.

 It is where second-hand shopping or Ukay-Ukay has garnered attention to today’s generation, where it delays excess waste, offering access to high-quality products at reduced costs, as they call today “rare finds.” It is because it is one of the effective ways to prevent the effects of fast fashion, which are beneficial to the environment and us since it is cost-effective while being creative with your style. People also tend to educate consumers about what we, Get Thrifty, are doing towards thrifting and the impacts of fast fashion. It would help if you also got thrifty as we see that what we are wearing now has a history and a hidden negative effect.