TikTok user says, “I have another Target haul for your consideration.” @maddogshaulsAs she begins one her videos.
She pulls out several products from the screen: concealer, pink, plush sandals and a blusher. These would have been great paired with a summer-style version of Sebastian Stans Met Gala look; and red, heart-shaped sunglasses. She dangles each piece before the camera, making audible gasps and describing them.
Fashion brands can now use the #haul trend as a social media marketing tool to gain more customers. Many of these haul videos focus on clothes. Shein, Revolve, H&M, Urban Outfitters, and Zara brands that rely on synthetic materials, such as nylon and polyester. These materials can keep costs down for both the company as well as the consumer. However, clothes last just as long as the trends they inspire.
This quick turnaround encourages both customers and creators looking for affordable, trendy, and constantly changing wardrobes to keep coming back, creating a vicious cycle of creation, purchase and waste. The ever-growing internet trend encourages mass consume, fast fashion, and waste, which worsens the environmental crisis.
A haul like @maddogshauls can be a long-lasting affair. Her videos are unique because of her unique style and cadence but they also mimic many others. (The TikToker did no respond to Input(Request for comment. A quick search for #haul in TikTok returns 18.8 billion views, making this one of the most popular trending topics on the platform. Each video features creators showing off their recent purchases and gifts, making it an adult version the unpacking or unwrapping videos. Kids are obsessed with this..
Kate Bartlett runs another popular account, @katebartlett, includes a video she called a PR haul. This shows how many packages she gets from brands each day. She pulls out boxes from Amazon and Instagram. Set Active is a brand that partners with SHEIN, Revolve, and many others. One Conair box has thousands of purple streamers. This makes it a portable bassinet to store the blow-dryer. Kate mentions that shell have been finding these little purple things all throughout her house. She concludes the video by saying, “It never ceases to feel like Christmas morning.” One user left a comment saying, “The amount waste makes my heart hurt.”
Creator @alexa.haulssThe video begins by her holding up a large plastic bag with the name SHEIN written in bold, dark letters across the side. She opens the bag and dumps several smaller plastic bags shaped like candy on the floor. Before trying on each item, she says all of my hauls were from SHEIN. She’s not the only one. My haul doomscroll reveals several other accounts that include #SHEINhaul/#RevolveHaul as their bio. These accounts all do 180-degree spins in various sets of the brands.
The advent of Instagram And TikTok [made] AnyoneFrom a viewer, to a ContentCreators feel like they could be Joan Rivers’ next appearance.
Many creators offer discount codes for each item. This indicates that they have a partnership with the brand they are hauling. Some people ask for information about the origins of the clothes, compliment the creators on their fashion choices, and/or want to purchase a specific item right away. The clothes are cute carbon copies if the latest fashion trends on mostly thin bodies. They all emphasize retail therapy, feeling good, and dressing to impress.
Around 10% ofGlobal carbon emissions each year come from the fashion and textile industries, which has seen a 5 percent increase in carbon emissions since 2000. The need to produce more clothing could be explained by the increase in the global population, which ranged from 6.2 billion to 7.99 billion between 2000 and now. Consumers are actually wearing their clothes.They are now half the length they were once.
The sheer volume of clothing that is thrown away About a garbage truck full per secondThe importance given to what is hot right now makes it possible. Fast-fashion brands create dozens upon dozens of collections each year in an effort to encourage constant consumption. Clothing that was fashionable in January may be out of fashion by March. In an effort to keep up with fashion, consumers tend to buy more clothing than they need to keep up with the changing trends. With the introduction of Instagram and TikTok, this trend has only increased. It makes anyone who views the content creators feel like Joan Rivers.
It can be a life-changing experience to become a successful influencer or creator of digital content. This is a popular profession among social media users who desire the freedom, security, and flexibility that the creator economy offers. These creators build a platform from the ground-up, just like someone builds a company. To grow an audience, creators must invest time, effort, and capital before any brands will seek partnerships. It can be tempting to turn to fast fashion brands in the early stages. It is possible to make bulk purchases without spending a lot of money. It might be difficult to break free once you have established a following.
I have It was successfulTo be Be more mindfulYou can’t always do it, but you might have to. Do What you have to do.
Secora Hawks is a ThriftTok-er who uses the handle @secoraTells Input: The majority are brands that reach out [for collaborations]They aren’t sustainable. It is not easy to find sustainable clothing brands for those with lower incomes. Because most of my content is thrifting-related, sharing these types finds with younger people who are in the same age bracket as me is much easier.
Fashion brands that are fast fashion make trendy clothes more accessible to people with lower incomes. But how does the social and environment responsibility of an influencer compare with that of a customer?
Hawks says she has previously worked with a fast fashion company and felt really guilty. Hawks was approached about a year ago by a fast fashion company to collaborate and give her free bathing suits. Hawks, who was in desperate need of new summer swimwear, accepted the offer. I have tried to be more mindful of the collaborations I’ve done. [since]She agrees, but sometimes you have to do what is necessary.
As I watch the waste build up on the screen in countless haul videos, it’s hard not to wish that some of these creators were creating something new. It is difficult to imagine, given the current state and pervasiveness of social media. Creators are the key to success in social media, especially Instagram and TikTok. EncouragedFashion-Tok only allows you to post once per day, making a steady momentum almost impossible without constant purchases. It’s the digital version of keeping up with Joneses. However, the Joneses are content creators who have thousands more followers than you.
Tessa Callaghan (CEO and co-Founder of) says there are only so many options. AlgiKnita company that is eco-conscious and makes yarn and fiber from kelp. The industry must make the change. Fashion is a major contributor to the climate crisis. However, the truth is that this won’t change until there is a global transition. The overproduction of synthetic clothing by companies leaves consumers with few options for sustainable fashion at a reasonable price. The cycle will continue unless there is a reimagined industry.
This continuum makes ethical and sustainable decisions difficult for both consumers and influencers. However, the role of influencer is defined as the ability to promote or change certain practices. Influence behavior. The creator economy demands a certain all-encompassing presence. This can be costly in time and money. So what can influencers do to stay relevant while the industry changes?
Transparency is the best thing for sustainability, says Malvika, founder of Digital Content Creator and founder of @stylebymalvika. If influencers began shifting the focus Why? They purchase what they do and not what they talk about. What If they buy, then the needle could shift towards consumers making better, sustainable choices.
This explanation may also cause some to pause about their buying and collaborating habits. It encourages a stop-and think approach that emphasizes quality over quantity. These #haul videos, which encourage others to buy fast fashion items in masse, perpetuate the climate crisis. This problem is intertwined with both the tech and fashion industries’ continued growth.
It can be difficult to figure out how to engage ethical creation in an age that both encourages it and defies it. But it is the stubborn loyalty to the easy way that cements the severity of our environmental conditions.
