Sustainable fashion tends to cost more unless you buy used or used clothes. But given the huge environmental impact of the fashion industry — estimated to account for 10 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions — eco-friendly clothing cannot be just a luxury affordable to a few, which is especially important in the context of surging demand for more environmentally friendly clothing.
The current pandemic appears to be creating a new ecological awareness, with more consumers looking for sustainable products on the market. A survey conducted in April found that 67 percent of consumers believe it is important for products to use sustainable materials when buying clothes, and 63 percent are also concerned about brands’ efforts to make products sustainable. But there’s a problem: fewer than a third of consumers are willing to pay more for eco-friendly products, according to a report.
In fact, sustainable fashion doesn’t have to cost a fortune if there is enough demand. “People think sustainable Fashion is expensive, but it doesn’t have to be,” says Brittany Burns, director of strategy and corporate development at non-profit Fashion For Good. When new innovative products enter the mainstream, this drives prices down. There will be a big shift in the market.”
Put a price on sustainable fashion
Right now, sustainable fashion often comes with a high price tag, but some brands, like Ninety Percent, are trying to make a difference. The London-based brand, which has pledged to donate 90 per cent of its profits to charity, has positioned itself as a cross between smaller fast-fashion brands and contemporary brands such as Acne, with t-shirts priced between £30 and £55. Shafiq Hassan, the brand’s founder, said: “Millennials, Gen Z, should be able to afford our clothes. I want the quality to be on a par with Acne, with all our sustainable processes and a third of their price.”
Making products cheap is no easy task for the brand. “We can do these prices because we have our own factory,” Explains Hassan. He added that all Bangladeshi garment workers are paid fair wages and have health insurance. Its knitted clothes, for example, cost more (a Merino pullover costs £150) because they are made of high-quality materials and in small quantities — but are still cheaper than other modern brands.
The role of fast fashion brands
Big brands like H&M have become key players in the sustainability space, with a clear price advantage thanks to mass production. H&M’s Conscious collection is made from materials that are at least 50% sustainably sourced (except when recycled cotton is used) and currently sells t-shirts for £6.99 to £19.99. Giorgina Waltier, H&M’s UK sustainability manager, said: “It’s really H&M’s mission to make sustainable fashion accessible and affordable to everyone.
H&M’s size also allows it to invest in and promote new technologies, such as Circulose, a new fibre made from discarded cotton fabrics that the retailer first used in February. “We want to use our sheer scale to really drive systemic change across the industry,” Waltier explained. We are investing in new and innovative technologies to bring more sustainable materials to scale and make them affordable.”
But some campaigners accused the fast-fashion chain of “greenwashing”, arguing that H&M’s entire business model — selling clothes in large quantities at low prices — was the antithesis of sustainability. H&M says its ultimate goal is to become a “100% circular business” and is committed to that, although it clearly has a long way to go.
Another concern is whether workers across the supply chain are being paid a living wage, given H&M’s low prices. There is growing concern about the treatment of garment workers, who were put in an extremely difficult position at the start of the pandemic as brands cancelled orders worth $3.18 billion in Bangladesh alone (H&M promised to pay its orders in full). According to the Clean Clothes Campaign, a whopping 93 percent of brands do not pay their suppliers a living wage. While H&M has put forward a strategy to create the “best preconditions for fair wages”, campaigners are calling for a more specific commitment to ensure all workers are paid a fair wage.
Investing in sustainable brands
All of this means that consumers accustomed to low prices may have to pay more to ensure that the clothes they buy are produced in the most sustainable and ethical way possible. “If you’re paying £3 for a shirt, you should really think about the circumstances behind the production and the sacrifices made by the workers,” Burns says. I’m not saying you need to spend 900 pounds on a shirt; I think there’s definitely a middle price.”
When considering the price of sustainable fashion, the phrase “buy less, buy more” is helpful; If you spend money on a piece of clothing that you can wear for years, rather than wearing it a few times and throwing it away, the cost per wear will automatically go down. “Consumption patterns must also change,” she continued. Buy less, but buy things you want to use longer.”
Consumer demand will be key to making sustainable fashion affordable for everyone – which means we need to support brands that are committed to the environment and demand more from those that are not doing enough now. This will allow brands to invest more in sustainable materials and technologies, which in turn will bring prices down. “It comes down to supply and demand; When demand changes, the industry tries to meet it. The decisions consumers make have a lot of power.”