Good Quality or Good Marketing?
Why you should think before splurging on name brands
Peyton Oden | Fashion Editor
A huge misconception about fast fashion is that only higher-end brands use sustainable methods to produce their clothes, but this is false. Major high-end companies like Prada and Chanel market their brands as classy, elegant and great quality, but they don’t have the proper systems in place to follow labor and sustainability guidelines.
Without these guidelines, brands don’t have to check the factories where their items are being manufactured to examine if the materials being used are sustainable, good for the environment or if their labor factories are safe for their employees.
E-commerce in the fashion industry is growing day by day and branding has become a huge part in what makes a consumer buy something without any background information on the product. This leaves customers to buy low-costing products for high retail prices just because of the brand name. There are many resources to figure out if a brand provides good quality clothing while producing in a sustainable way, while also enforcing humane labor laws in their factories.
One resource is Good On You, a brand that is backed by actress Emma Watson, which strives to share information on clothing brands policies regarding sustainability and labor laws. The company rates brands on a scale of “We Avoid,” the lowest on the scale, to “Great,” being the highest on the scale.
This rating is an average score from three main areas based on people, the planet and animals. Each rating comes with an explanation, some contain information on factory conditions, materials used in garments, etc. Finding out that one of your favorite brands isn’t as sustainable as you thought can come as a huge shock, which is why Good On You provides alternative brands and prices of each item.
When debating on if an item is worth the price, be sure to think about how long the item will last you. With microtrends going in and out of style within a matter of days, by the time you order something to participate in a certain trend, people are already on to something better, leaving you with something that will not be worn anymore.
If you want to participate in sustainable practices, be sure to buy items that will last you and that can be used in various different outfits. Instead of having multiple pairs of jeans both in good and bad quality, try only having one or two pairs that are good quality and donating the extra pairs.
A bag from a high-end brand that costs over hundreds of dollars doesn’t mean a bag from the local thrift store can’t have the same quality, if not better and the same goes for other items. Sustainable brands can have ethical production standards, but they are not often affordable for many which can lead to the purchasing of fast fashion because of the conveniently low prices.
At the end of the day, everyone has different ideas of what a good quality piece of clothing is, nonetheless, it is important to look out for brands charging more for a product just because of the brand name.
Peyton Oden serves as our Fashion Editor. This is his first year with Alice. Peyton is from Birmingham, Alabama and is a junior Apparel & Textiles Major with a minor in Advertising & Public Relations. Peyton was a communications major up until two weeks before his first semester started when he changed his major to apparel & textiles with a concentration in fashion retail.
