Fast fashion: understanding its impacts and how to act differently

Cheap, easy, accessible, fast. A little top for €5, a trendy dress received in 48 hours, and hey presto, we forget about it. Except that behind these clothes that sometimes only last for a few stories, hides a well-established model... and deeply destructive .

Since the early 2000s, fashion has shifted into a logic of hyper-acceleration . Where there used to be two collections per year (spring/summer, autumn/winter), some brands now offer one per week: up to 52 micro-seasons per year (Marquis, 2021). Pioneers in the genre, Zara and H&M, led the way. Players like Shein then pushed the envelope even further, with several thousand new items posted online every day (McKinsey & Company, 2024).

This model is incredibly efficient... commercially. By 2025, fast fashion will be worth nearly $151 billion worldwide, with annual growth of more than 10% (UniformMarket, 2024). But its effectiveness is based on a brutal equation: massive production, reduced costs and working conditions, offshoring, appalling environmental impact, and deplorable quality.

What are the main consequences of fast fashion?

• Massive overproduction : More than 100 billion items of clothing are produced each year, a large portion of which are neither sold nor worn (Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2017).
• Greenhouse gas emissions : The fashion industry is responsible for 3–10% of global CO₂ emissions (Nature, 2020).
• Water consumption : 93 billion cubic meters of water are used each year.
• Plastic pollution : 35% of microplastics in the oceans come from synthetic fibers released during washing (Niinimäki et al., 2020).
• Social conditions : Millions of workers (mostly women) work in precarious conditions for wages well below the minimum wage (Fashion Revolution, 2020).

What is the environmental impact of fast fashion?

The environmental impact of fast fashion is colossal, affecting every stage of the clothing life cycle.

According to the UN, the textile sector emits around 1.2 billion tonnes of CO₂ per year , more than all international flights and maritime transport combined (UNEP, 2018).
It also consumes about 93 billion cubic meters of water per year , mainly for irrigating cotton, dyeing fabrics and washing finished products (Nature, 2020).

The chemical processes used – bleaching, dyeing, fixings – alone generate 20% of the world's industrial wastewater , often discharged untreated into the rivers of producing countries.

Another major problem: synthetic fibers (such as polyester), which are very common in fast fashion. With each wash, they release plastic microfibers that escape filtration systems and end up in the oceans. The textile industry is thus responsible for 35% of microplastics present in aquatic environments (Nature, 2020).

Finally, the model relies on massive overproduction: more than 92 million tons of textile waste are generated each year. Less than 1% is recycled into new clothing. The majority ends up incinerated or landfilled, fueling air, soil, and groundwater pollution (Quantis, 2018).

What are the social conditions in the fast fashion industry?

Behind every cheap garment is often an underpaid worker , without protection or rights. The industry employs approximately 300 million people, the majority of whom are women in the Global South . These workers are often exposed to very low wages, excessive hours, sexual harassment, and unsafe work environments . Despite the Rana Plaza tragedy in 2013, where more than 1,100 people died, little has changed structurally (Fashion Revolution, 2020).

Another sensitive issue is the involvement of forced Uyghur labor in fast fashion in China . The Xinjiang region produces nearly 20% of the world's cotton , but this cotton is also marred by serious human rights violations. For several years, thousands of Uyghurs, a persecuted Muslim minority, have been forced to work in fields or textile factories, sometimes far from their home regions. These workers are placed under surveillance, supervised by security systems, and deprived of their freedom.

Many major brands, including Zara, H&M, Uniqlo, and Nike , have been singled out for their indirect ties to suppliers in the region. The problem? Supply chains are so opaque that it's nearly impossible to accurately trace the origin of cotton. And despite promises of transparency, few brands are currently able to guarantee that their products are not made with forced labor.

This situation illustrates one of the most critical blind spots of fast fashion: when the quest for low prices comes at the expense of fundamental rights and transparency.

That's why at Lucid we produce our clothes in Belgium, close to home, so we can visit them regularly and be sure of the working conditions of the people who make our clothes. If you want to know more about our workshops .

To learn more about the Uighurs, we strongly recommend that you read the full article written by WeDressFair , they talk about it better than we do.

What are the 3 main fast fashion brands?

Zara, H&M, and Shein dominate the market. Zara pioneered responsive fashion, delivering new collections within weeks. H&M democratized the model globally with highly competitive pricing. Shein disrupted all benchmarks with a fully digital, data-driven strategy capable of producing thousands of new items per day at unbeatable prices.

Are Zara and H&M really fast fashion brands?

Yes, absolutely. Zara invented the model, H&M made it mainstream.

Even though H&M and Zara now advertise their "conscious" lines or their sustainability goals, the reality of their production remains problematic : each year, they continue to launch tens of thousands of new models, thus fueling overconsumption.

In short, although these brands claim a transformation towards more ethical fashion, their economic models remain fundamentally based on constant renewal, low prices and speed , three pillars incompatible with true sustainability.

Where does 85% of our fast fashion end up?

The average lifespan of a fast fashion garment is less than 12 months . A large portion of it ends up in the trash: according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 85% of textiles produced each year are thrown away or incinerated within a year of purchase .

And it doesn't stop there. Many clothes donated to charities are actually resold by sorting companies and then exported to countries in the South like Ghana, Kenya, or Chile. There, these clothes arrive in excessive numbers, often in an unusable state, and end up in open-air dumps or are burned in the open air . This causes massive pollution, particularly in the soil, groundwater, and ambient air.
By wanting to do a good deed, we sometimes unwittingly participate in an environmental catastrophe elsewhere.

How can this model be repaired?

Fixing fast fashion won't happen through individual actions alone, but through systemic transformation at every level.

This starts with reducing production speed . Stricter legislation, such as the upcoming European directive on extended producer responsibility (EPR), is needed to force brands to finance the end-of-life of the clothing they put on the market.

We also need to develop real textile recycling channels , with technologies capable of separating complex fibers (cotton/polyester blends, etc.). Today, less than 1% of clothing produced is recycled into new clothing . This also involves producing quality clothing that can be reused rather than disposable items that we don't know what to do with after a few uses.

But beyond the technique, it's our clothing culture that needs to change . Slow fashion offers an opposite model: producing less, better, with clothes designed to last, timeless, repairable, resalable, or transformable.
And for consumers? This means buying less, but better quality , and restoring value to clothing instead of considering it a disposable product.

How many times does a garment need to be worn to make it last?

Wearing an item of clothing at least 30 times can significantly reduce its environmental impact — up to a factor of 3 , according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (2017).

However, the current average is much lower: only 7 to 10 times in Europe (Nature, 2020). This figure can be explained by several factors: poor quality, rapid disinterest, the influence of fleeting trends, and low emotional attachment to our clothes.

Encouraging people to choose sustainable clothing from the moment they buy … These are simple, yet powerful, steps to break the throwaway cycle.

Which age group buys the most clothes?

16- to 24-year-olds are the biggest clothing consumers. This generation is highly exposed to trends via social media , which fuels a frequent purchasing cycle. Yet, this is also the age group most open to second-hand, vintage, and repair : a paradox that must be transformed into a sustainable transition (McKinsey, 2024).

Which brands don't do fast fashion?

In contrast to fast fashion, some brands are focusing on slower, more transparent, and more responsible fashion .
Produce less, but better, by favoring certified sustainable materials, controlled volumes, decent working conditions, and above all, clothing designed to last a long time through its style and quality. These are brands that don't chase the latest trend, but build a more sustainable vision of fashion and our wardrobes.

This is what we are trying to do at Lucid Collective . By offering timeless clothing made in short circuits in Belgium , in workshops with a social objective , from recycled or low-impact materials , we are able to offer sustainable production and complete traceability. We believe in fashion that makes sense and respects both humans and the planet, and we want to do everything we can to challenge the textile industry.

But fortunately, we're not alone, and other sustainable brands are also part of the movement. In fact, we wrote an article on the 10 best sustainable fashion brands.

Conclusion

Fast fashion is an industry that has made speed the center of everything , to the detriment of almost everything else. Behind low prices and fast-paced trends lie realities that can no longer be ignored: overproduction, pollution, precarious work, and large-scale waste.

But it's not about feeling guilty. It's about understanding. And once you know, you can choose differently.

At Lucid, we believe another fashion is possible . Slower, more transparent, more respectful. A fashion that gives meaning to what we wear. Not perfect, but honest. Not rigid, but committed.

Changing the norm starts with small gestures. Repairing a garment. Buying less but better. Favoring quality and pieces we'll love to wear for a long time. So what are we waiting for?

Sources

• Ellen MacArthur Foundation. (2017). A New Textiles Economy .
• McKinsey & Company. (2024). The State of Fashion 2025 .
• Nature Reviews Earth & Environment. (2020). The environmental price of fast fashion .
• Fashion Revolution. (2020). Fashion Transparency Index .
  
• UNEP. (2018). Putting the brakes on fast fashion .
• Quantis. (2018). Measuring Fashion Report .
• UniformMarket. (2024). Fast Fashion Industry Statistics .
• WeDressFair. (2023). How fast fashion contributes to the exploitation of Uighurs.