Why Slow Fashion is the Only Choice for Sustainable Fashion Clothing

‘Slow fashion’ is the current buzzword – and the opposite of fast fashion. Fast fashion retailers like Shein and Temu flood the market with low-quality clothing. People buy their garments to wear only a few times until an influencer or pop star sets a new trend.

As people buy fashion garments that they only use a few times before discarding, global landfills are full of discarded ‘fast fashion’ items. This has a devastating effect on the environment.

Sustainability is an equally important buzzword, which is why so many savvy designers in the fashion industry have become aware of creating sustainability practices for non-fast fashion garments that will withstand the test of time. To combat slow fashion, they create timeless, classic garments that don't harm the planet.

Thus, biodegradable, ethical, sustainable fashion has become another important trend. Slow fashion trends focus on reducing the amount of unethical fashion that manufacturers produce in bucketloads.

Read what we have to say about The Problem With Fast Fashion: How the Fashion Industry is Damaging the Environment and The Global Fashion Glut.

Slow Fashion Clothing is Ethical Fashion

Slow fashion is, in essence, sustainable clothing. Slow fashion UK brand manufacturers produce high quality garments.

The ‘slow fashion’ trend follows on the heels of the slow food movement, created in 1986 by Italian Carlo Petrini. The ‘slow food’ movement focused on educating the public about fast food and promoting local food cultures and traditions instead.

In the same vein as the fast food movement, slow fashion suggests we buy more biodegradable garments and avoid fast fashion consumption.

Sustainable or ‘slow fashion’ advocates create and sell fashion brands that withstand the test of time. To manufacture slow fashion brands and withstand the latest trends, companies use biodegradable materials that are long-lasting and are more classically designed. This way, the clothing lasts longer than the current 5-minute trends that fast fashion advocates so strongly.

Many people discard their old clothes. But if you considered being more sustainable, you would think about recycling your ‘slow fashion’ items and reusing them. After all, the material used to make these items is long-wearing and of a higher quality than fast fashion items. Popular eco-friendly brand textile choices include organic cotton, linen, and Tencel.

What are Slow Fashion Clothes?

Not only do manufacturers make more environmentally safe fashion brands out of eco-friendly raw materials, but they also produce sustainable fashion:

· Brand factories dye the fabrics and print on them using eco-friendly methods that use far less energy and water.

· They also use fewer chemicals in the manufacturing process.

· Manufacturers consider the environment when they produce a ‘slow fashion’ brand so that there is little, or very little waste. These manufacturers also treat their workers well and offer them a clean, safe working environment.

· ‘Slow fashion’ is clothing that factories don't mass-produce: manufacturers create sustainable fashion clothing in small batches to reduce waste and ensure good quality control; this is very important in the ‘slow fashion’ business.

· Sustainable garments are long-lasting as they are of good quality and manufacturers make them using excellent materials.

The Emergence of Sustainable Slow Fashion Clothing Brands

Nobody used the term ‘slow fashion brand’ until way back in 2007, when Kate Fletcher, Professor of Sustainable Fashion at the London College of Fashion came up with the term and started a fashion revolution.

A professor, activist, and designer, she reacted to the effects fast fashion is having on the planet. In an article she wrote for The Ecologist back in 2007, she defined fast fashion as emphasising quality over quantity. "People use traditional craftsmanship techniques to create long-lasting clothing”, she said. 

Sustainable clothes are not based on time, but quality, she added. “Slow is not the opposite of fast – there is no dualism – but a different approach where designers, buyers, retailers, and consumers are more aware of the impacts products have on workers, communities, and ecosystems.”

Sure, fashion that is not sustainable is a lot cheaper, but as Ms Fletcher explains: “Of course, quality costs more. We will buy fewer products, but ones that are higher in value. A fairer distribution of the ticket price through the supply chain is an intrinsic part of the agenda.

"...More sustainable design enables a richer interaction between designer and maker; maker and garment; garment and user.”

The Key Principles of The 'Wear Slow Fashion' Movement

Kate Fletcher’s points, made so long ago, are the gist of more eco-friendly fashion today and followed religiously by many people and businesses like maake, who encourage ‘slow fashion’ and using fabrics that are certified sustainable. (Read our guide on textile certification here). As part of today’s sustainable fashion trend, people consider the following:

1.     Sustainability: This involves being environmentally aware throughout the lifecycle of a garment, from the moment a business manufactures pieces to when they dye and print on them, design, use, and finally discard them.

2.     Fair trade: Involves promoting good fair labour practices in every sphere of the fashion industry. Every business should treat their employees well, give them fair, healthy working conditions and pay them a decent living wage.

3.     Local production: Part of being environmentally safe is caring for small local businesses and using locally manufactured materials and resources. Buying locally means that we can reduce carbon emissions created by transporting those items.

4.     Quality manufacture: It’s important to emphasise the focus on good quality over quantity. It’s all about buying fewer high-quality clothes than cheaper fast fashion brands made from poor quality materials.

5.     Transparency: Manufacturers and retailers must be transparent about how they make these items, where they make them, and what fabrics they use to make the clothing.

The Sustainable Fashion Movement asks you to:

· Choose fashion items that you already have in your wardrobe and keep them for a long time.

· Buy good, gently worn vintage garments to recycle.

· Purchase fewer items less often – selecting quality pieces over quantity for your wardrobe, more sustainable items over fast fashion brands.

· Purchase good quality pieces over quantity.

· Find natural, organic, and environmentally safe fabrics.

How to Adopt Fashion Sustainability 

If you shop for quality ‘slow fashion’ clothing that is classic in style, you’re making a conscious decision to buy pieces that will last and withstand fashion trends.

This is the antithesis of fast fashion, which is on trend one day and out of fashion the following week. Fast fashion brands produce low-quality clothes. They manufacture these items mostly out of cheap synthetic materials, unethically, using cheap labour.

Sustainable brands fall into a more expensive price range because:

· Factories manufacture them sustainably.

· They create their environmentally friendly fashion clothing from quality natural and organic, safe materials. 

· Local artisans create sustainable fashion with impeccable craftsmanship. 

· The sustainable clothes industry wants to be long-lasting.

· Production costs are higher for the eco-friendly fashion industry, which is also why it’s more expensive.

· When we make clothes ethically, we pay our workers decent wages and they work in safe, healthy conditions. 

4 Important Questions to Ask About Clothing

Before purchasing any garment, ask yourself these 4 questions to find whether you are about to spend money on sustainable materials and clothes. If not, follow these tips to choose more eco-friendly brands:

1. Am I buying from a store that sells a quality clothing brand? Fast fashion outlets abound, so be more discerning. Find retailers who offer quality brands manufactured with craftmanship, or garments made by designers or brands known for their environmentally friendly fashion ethos. 

2. Have I read the label and taken note of what it says? Consider whether the textile is organic, synthetic, or both. Natural and organic fibres such as cotton, wool, linen and hemp, all create more hard-wearing, comfortable clothing.  

3. What will it cost me to clean the garment? Check the washing instructions. If you need to dry clean an item, only purchase it if you will wear it a few times. If you’re planning to wear it regularly, caring for the garment will be expensive.

4. Do I know enough about fashion sustainability to make an informed decision? Do you know which clothing people consider fast fashion, and, in contrast, which are the more environmentally safe fashion brands?

If you’re unsure about fashion sustainability, why not read the comprehensive blog we compiled on fast fashion, The Problem with Fast Fashion. We also put together an explanatory blog on Why Sustainability in Fashion is so Important,which puts sustainability into perspective.

Help Bring Down Fast Fashion Numbers

We recently researched some sobering statistics which are worth taking a look at here:

· Statistics in an article in Waste Managed showed that the UK produces the fourth largest amount of textile waste in Europe. We generate approximately 206,456 tonnes every year. And, as further statistics show, it’s expected that by 2050, £140 billion worth of clothes will end up in UK landfills. That’s bad news for the fashion industry.

· Talking of 2050, other stats tell us that by that year, fast fashion will account for 10% of CO2 emissions on a global scale. And manufacturers will use 25% of carbon emissions to make these garments. That’s before people discard those items which then end up in landfills.

Some Good News in 2025

2024 & 2025 have been good years for Slow Fashion. According to the latest research in an article on the website, Fashion United UK, two-thirds of British consumers bought second-hand garments online in 2024. Also, “It’s expected that pre-owned online shopping is set to grow to £4.8 billion in the UK this year”. What this means to the economy is that “British consumers saved a collective £ 5.6 billion in 2024, and kept 199 million products in circulation.”

Of course, it’s not just sustainability awareness that is making us purchase more second-hand goods rather than rushing out and buying Fast Fashion. An increase in the cost of living and wider availability of second-hand clothing is also playing a part in this.

Statistics are also interesting. According to the article, “74% of people aged 34 and under are embracing second-hand shopping compared to 52% of over-55s”.

Make the Transition to Slow Fashion

Here are a few guidelines to help you understand the importance of choosing a biodegradable fashion brand and shifting your mindset:

1.     Love what you already have

It’s time to fall in love with your wardrobe and take care of your clothing so that items last a long time. There are several ways to extend the life of your clothes: wash with care, sew on missing buttons, or replace broken zips. Remove stains the moment they happen. 

2.    Buy second-hand

Discover some second-hand and vintage stores; they are veritable treasure troves of quality, sustainable slow fashion clothing. You’ll often find garments that have never been worn, with their price tags on, because in this era of excess, many of us buy too much and never get around to wearing everything.

Aside from ‘new old clothing’, gently worn garments are cheaper than purchasing quality pieces first-hand. After all, websites like Etsy and Amazon have made a fortune selling used goods to their customers. So check out what they have to offer.

3.        Buy British

Support local brands, choose a manufacturer who specialises in eco-friendly fashion for its customers, a sustainable brand that produces quality clothing.

4.       Take a sustainable perspective

Consider your wardrobe in a different light. Keep your clothes instead of discarding them. These garments should last; as a part of the slow fashion movement, you should wear these fashion garments for years. You should only buy fashion items you love, brands you will cherish in years to come, in a size and style that suits you.

Consider your clothing from the perspective of more biodegradable fashion. Value your sustainable slow fashion items and the way manufacturers produce these brands. After all, the craftmanship and care taken to produce sustainable and ethical brands are what matters. 

Follow our Lead Towards Ethical Production

As textile manufacturers and printers, we focus on supplying sustainable products. We are also the proud winners of the 2023 Awards for Most Ethical Fabric and Best Custom Printing! We believe in creating a sustainable world with seamless custom textile printing and ethical production, and we produce and supply products that we tailor for you that are created only when you order them. We take slow to heart.

• maake has a zero waste policy – we don’t waste any of the material we print. Instead, we supply local charities, schools and educational establishments with excess fabrics and cut-offs for them to reuse. In addition, we supply our customers with upcycling bags of various sizes, filled with cut-off fabric – free of charge.
• We fit all our printing machines with energy-saving cut-off switches to reduce energy consumption. That’s how we stay sustainable.
• We only use biodegradable inks when we print designs on fabrics.
• We print only what you need so no waste fabrics ever remain on our shelves. 
• We don’t resell or restock any printed material that people return to us. Instead, we donate the fabrics or offer them free to our customers – see above.
• We source all our materials ethically from UK-trusted mills. This helps the local economy.
• We believe in local production – we produce your entire order in our NW London mill. If you prefer, you can pick up your order to reduce our carbon footprint instead of having us deliver it to you.

Read about our focus on social responsibility here.

Non-Fast Fashion: Sustainable Design & Printing with maake

When you shop with us for fabrics and textile printing, you can also make use of our innovative design tools to help you be more sustainable. These tools will also make your products more cost-effective. They include:

• A Sample Book of every fabric we offer, featuring small-size swatches of each fabric to give you an idea each product’s look and feel when we have printed on it.
• A handy Colour Atlas, a 1-metre piece of fabric printed with the 2,400+ colours we use when we print. It clearly displays each colour and its code.

 Design your own fabrics

Choose from our wide selection of magnificent fabrics