Fast Fashion is everywhere. It has always been present on British high streets and now it even dominates online shopping with big retailers like the boohoo group running multiple popular online shopping destinations including Pretty Little Thing and Nastygal. The appeal of fast fashion is understandable. Cheap clothing with frequent discount promotions as well as a constant stream of new items for each micro-season as opposed to the traditional autumn/winter and spring/summer. However, this has all made way for a new throwaway culture with millions of garments ending up in landfills as a result of single-use purchases.

The solution Sustainable fashion. Typically sustainable fashion is associated with high-quality clothing that stands the test of time with a hefty price tag attached. Fast fashion retailers are doing their research and making moves to improve the fashion landscape and make it a sustainable and inexpensive one. The government has backed sustainable clothing action plans with big high street retailers such as Next, H&M and ASOS but it will take time to transform fast fashion retail practices and make them ethical ones. While we wait perhaps it’s time for brands that have been successfully providing us with sustainable, conscious clothing to take a step into the spotlight.

A popular choice for sustainable fashion on the high street is H&M’s Conscious line. H&M have pledged to be a source of sustainable fashion on the high street going as far as informing consumers on how to care for garments with hacks on cleaning and repairing clothes to help them last longer. Alternatively you can seek out PACT clothing for affordable eco-friendly loungewear, thredUP for upcycling heaven and Outdoor Voices for active apparel that matches big brand rivals in quality and uses recycled materials.