Ms. Xingyun Shan, the country coordinator of Fashion Revolution Singapore, a global organization that promotes transparency, sustainability, ethics, and fairness in the fashion industry, suggested that people rethink how to relate to clothing.
She wondered what would happen if clothes were more expensive or less readily available than they are today.
How would we shop for or acquire ‘new’ clothes? She stated that our wardrobes are the first place we would likely look. However, people can also look at the wardrobes of their family members and friends.
Can we borrow clothing from our friends and family to swap? Can we ask our local tailors and seamstresses to repair a split seam?
ALTERNATIVES TO BUYING
Renting and swapping clothes is growing in popularity and acceptance by consumers in their choice of fashion, said Ms Carolyn Poon, sustainability director at the Textile and Fashion Federation,Singapore.
These alternative options to buying clothes make the take/make-dispose linear fashion economy less circular, she stated.
This is the best way to rent and swap your clothes. She said that they extend the life expectancy of clothes that have been produced and worn.
Raena Lim, the founder of Style Theory, said that Style Theory has more than 200,000 registered customers.
She said that the firm has rented more than 2.3M designer wear and prevented 600,000 of them from entering landfills prematurely in five years.
Ms Lim said that sustainability is one of the key pillars of the firm.
We know that 60%of clothing ends up in the trash every year. The rental model has shown that items can be kept longer within the fashion ecosystem. This decreases the need to produce more.
She said that an average 30 times per item is rented, while an item in a woman’s wardrobe is used much less.