Over the last twenty years, fashion has come to rely on low-cost labor to meet the growing demand for cheap and trendy clothes. Most brands strive to produce goods in the cheapest way possible to retain the most profit. To do this, brands use their purchasing power to demand low-cost production for the products they buy. Afraid of losing the business, factories are pressured to churn out thousands of trendy apparel pieces cheaper and faster, with garment workers ultimately paying the price. How did we get here? 👗💨 Before the 1800s, fashion involved sourcing materials like leather or wool to make clothing. Fashion picked up speed during the Industrial Revolution when new technologies like factories, textile machines, and ready-made clothing factories, and mass production was introduced to the world. During this time, local dressmaking businesses began to open catering to middle-class women, while women of lower incomes continued to make their own clothes. During World War II, natural fabrics like cotton, silk, nylon, wool, leather, and rubber were prioritized for the war leaving little for civilian use. Regulation L-85, issued by the War Production Board in 1942, restricted the use of natural fabrics and even limited style choices by color and length of skirts among other things. These restrictions and functionality of the new designs led to standardized production of clothes that middle-class consumers began to like. By the 1960s and 1970s, the younger generations began to value trend-focused, cheaply-made clothing. To keep up with demand, brands looked for ways to appeal to this new customer. Opening textile mills across the developing world led to faster production and meant clothes could be churned out cheaper and quicker; however, the outsourced supply chains fast fashion relied on were often supplied by underpaid labor. By the late 1990s and early 2000s, fast fashion took off in the US with retailers like Zara, H&M, Topshop, and Forever21. By the mid-2000s, consumers were addicted to the cheap price points and ability to dress stylishly for less. In 2020 the term “ultra-fast fashion” began to be used to describe even faster fast fashion.