So I guess by now we all know that it is that time of the year, where fast fashion stores lure you in with incredible, one of a kind sales and discount deals. You are going to see up to 80% off on many fast fashion stores this season.
Now we know that the game has changed and most of us due to the pandemic are doing our shopping online. Well, it is still the same thing or even worse if you consider that before, you only needed to take a walk on the busy street and would be bombarded with display tags saying BLACK FRIDAY SALE UP TO 70%, RABBAT AB 70%, etc. But now they have access to our mail boxes and E-mail addresses and let alone paid ads on every app we open.
Having lived in USA in 2010, and witnessed the birthplace of this illusion and also participated gave me a perspective on what it really is there. Oh! remember it comes right after Thanks-giving Thursday, where people give thanks and behave like humans to each other, and then savages the next day. Fortunately, I was not a shopping freak (maybe for the gadgets) so I only walked through one or two malls to which my sister had to drive me.
Seeing Americans camping outside some stores, waiting for the doors to bust open, or the endless queues at the check-out counter in fast fashion shops like Charlotte Russe and Forever 21. It was interesting to watch people so committed to a brand that they would carry food, dress in their pyjamas and wait loyally in the cold for the luxury of owning ‘stuff’. Anyway, here I am in Switzerland where I thought things would be a bit different, however the illusion has caught up and is a sensation in Switzerland too, even in Uganda where I am from, people indulge in cyber deals in “outside countries” as we call them, to have them shipped home later by family members.
Even though I must say in Switzerland, that it is more controlled because stores close quite early so in my opinion, the Swiss shopper does their damage on the Cyber Monday sales which are even worse because there is a delivery cost attached plus you can not feel and see what you are paying for. Having worked as a Sales Assistant at a famous mall in Zurich, I witnessed the whole rush of shoppers scoring “unbelievable deals” and brand owners setting financial annual goals and setting the holiday season to cover up the rest of the year.
Here is what Black Friday enthusiasts need to understand, and it is simple. You need to understand that profit oriented establishments that have billions of dollars in brand investments only need your money. After setting annual financial goals, remember that the holiday season is their biggest time where the sales will cover up for the rest of the slow year. After selling to you, there is no emotional exchange or attachment to something that you are going to put on your body, the deal is done until next time. BYE BYE
Image from Getty Images https://www.ladn.eu/nouveaux-usages/usages-et-style-de-vie/black-friday-alternative-climate-friday/
You need to also know that fast fashion high-end brands already have unsold stock from previous seasons that they intend to mark down and gain their profit regardless.
The ILLUSION is that you are buying an outfit for way less than its original price, that is false, the truth is that fast fashion brands, including the high-end ones will always immensely profit from your hard earned money because the cost of production is as low as it can get and any mark down or up from there is always a good profit for them.
Now I am not saying that profiting is a bad idea, but in my opinion, when we put into consideration the perpetual mass production of fast fashion brands of similar styles and colours, offering you the illusion that you are special by buying from us and yet we mass produce what you wear and most of it is made in poor countries by poor communities in poor conditions that are paid meagre salaries.
Check out this blogpost to read more on why you should need to be sustainable.https://theturah.wordpress.com/2018/11/12/why-be-sustainable/
The items are then advertised as ”must haves”, sold to the common people who have been lied to that they are doing something awesome and cool by shopping from these brands and having clothing that is not special with materials that are not eco-friendly, with a short-lived rush that comes from having them, only to wear them a couple of times or until you see another person with the same exact piece of item and the rush is gone, and the shopper is onto the next hunt. The cycle goes on and on.
Here is the middle ground, speaking as an ecofriendly designer, at this point fashion lovers need to start investing and spending with slow fashion brands. Here is why;
- They do not believe in bombarding people with unreal illusions of sales, the transparency aspect is to the shopper’s advantage to know what exactly they are paying for.
- You are more likely to get uncommon, one of a kind pieces from slow fashion brands than fast fashion brands.
- It is your right as a shopper to know who made your clothes and slow fashion provides that right without a question
- Eco-friendly pieces last longer than fast fashion pieces.
- You are directly helping the environment by investing in the the good it gives including the people that create what you are wearing. You are empowering one man to another by supporting their business directly as opposed to vulturous profit oriented brands that clearly do not care about the everyday person less about the environment.
Check out this post for more https://theturah.wordpress.com/2020/11/03/you-are-what-you-wear/
With that I leave you with a couple of things to think about this coming Black Friday and even more to come. I want to empower you to have a right to know where your money is going. I would like you to ask yourself before spending with a fast fashion brand, WHO BENEFITS? Is it the poor communities, the fast fashion brand, the environment, its people, the shopper, after this whole rush, who is the happiest?
Take your power back and have your own mind to know what is good or necessary for you, the illusion that you are to buy something just because it has been discounted is the real trap. Take your time and search for a good deal that suits you and your lifestyle, do not buy by impulse, and take your time to plan out the things that you need in order to make your life better, lest you buy everything and have nothing at the same time.
Check out my handmade up-cycled products in the SHOP icon at the top. https://theturah.wordpress.com/shop/ Thank you very much and please share. Hope this was helpful, if it was or was not, comment below. 🙂
If you would like to see a few slow fashion brands that you can support, please check out this link https://theturah.wordpress.com/2019/07/25/5-top-eco-friendly-fashion-brands/ ,
TURAH ECO 
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