Image: Freepik
By Madalena Fonseca and Shenay Mbemba
Updated: November 26, 2025
What can students tell us about fast fashion? Perhaps where it comes from? Fashion sectors like PrettyLittleThing and Shein are allegedly notorious for selling products that negatively affect the environment. So, the subject of ‘where’ our fashion comes from is at play.
Fast fashion culture lives among the young adults of today – even though most are fully aware of how the production processes that fuel the fast fashion can ruin the environment. “I don’t take it in consideration because all of us go and buy clothes without thinking about actual waste… [although] we should,” said a student who did not want to give her name.
“The more what I think about is seasonal clothing so what you don’t sell out, you put it out somewhere and that’s the waste I’m thinking of.”
Generation Z members say they want sustainable clothes – but they nonetheless buy fast fashion, said Dr Marc Duffy from Sheffield Hallam University in an article about the fashion-buying habits of young people.
“Generation z are increasingly concerned for the planet, with 94% believing that action is needed relative to sustainability, and that we need to come together to solve important issues. All participants had a negative attitude towards the term ‘fast fashion’, mentioning words such as ‘unsustainable, unethical and bad quality’.
“But the large proportion who admitted buying fast fashion demonstrates a clear gap between pro-sustainability ideologies and observed behaviour.”
It’s wrong – but do they care?
Young people know that is wrong to buy clothes from fast fashion brands, but they still do. And because people still buy products from these unsustainable brands, they become more and more profitable.
Devki Nath, a 22-year-old student said: “I do care about buying sustainable products, but I feel that those brands which have sustainable clothing are always so expensive, so I just end up by going to Zara and Primark.”
Nath is not alone. “The current cost-of-living crisis (that big inflation beast that just won’t quit) is eroding Gen Z’s willingness to purchase sustainable products, according to a recent survey of about 1,000 people across all ages out of the UK,” says McKinsey & Company in an article title The Price is Not Right.
“Sustainably made products – everything from clothes to food to cosmetics – often carry a price premium,” it said, adding that not all shoppers believe that items will actually be recycled.
Image: Unsplash
The complex relationship between fast fashion, consumer behaviour, and sustainability continues to be big issue today. Many young adults acknowledge the environmental impact of fast fashion yet struggle to align their beliefs with their purchasing habits.
This dilemma underscores the urgent need for systemic change within the fashion industry. While consumer education and awareness campaigns play a crucial role in shifting attitudes, they alone are insufficient to address the root causes of fast fashion’s environmental impact.
Structural reforms, such as regulatory measures, supply chain transparency, and sustainable production practices, are essential to make a meaningful change in the next years.
Still, there is hope. “When it comes to sustainability in purchase decision making, Gen Z consumers also come out on top. 54% of Gen Z will pay 10% more on a sustainable product, compared to 50% of Millennials and just 23% of Baby Boomers,” writes Emma observer Tidswell in a 2023 report.
Image: Unsplash