FAST FASHION VS. SLOW FASHION: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND ECONOMIC EFFECTS

Abstract

The fashion industry in the world has undergone a very rapid change in the recent decades mainly due to the shift in consumer preferences, technology and globalization. The emergence of fast fashion, a type of business model that has short production periods, cheap clothes, and shifts in trends, is among the most important developments. Although fast fashion has facilitated the accessibility of the new fashion products and generated economic growth in the economy, it has also created grave concerns about the environmental degradation, overexploitation of resources, child labor, and economic sustainability in the long term. To address these issues, the notion of slow fashion has become an alternative solution that focuses on ethical manufacture, environmentally-consciousness, good craftsmanship, and sustainable consumption