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  • Hi everyone, it's Justine. This year there has been a wave of fast fashion brands

  • going bankrupt. Forever21 in Europe, Topshop in the US...

  • big names that are suddenly in big trouble. So does it mean that the

  • so-called golden era of fast fashion is over? What are the options for you as a

  • consumer, as a shopper, wherever in the world you are? That's the discussion that

  • I would like to start in today's video. And before we do that, let me very

  • quickly define what fast fashion actually is, to make sure that we're

  • talking about the same thing because it's not a word commonly used everywhere

  • in the world what is fast fashion in a nutshell fast

  • fashion is a concept created for rich countries if we're honest a fast fashion

  • brand will have clothes produced in a less less rich country then production

  • was so cheap that they can afford to ship the clothes all the way to Europe

  • for instance where the living standard is and the costs are higher and then

  • they can sell these clothes in an expensive store somewhere in London

  • where the rent is expensive the salespeople are expensive everything is

  • more expensive so the business model works because the production costs in

  • the first place were insanely low it works because there are people buying in

  • rich countries and people producing in less rich countries it's a system based

  • on inequalities internationally and even then the margins for the fast fashion

  • brand are really low because the price tags are kept so low to attract

  • consumers even on a budget so if you're a fast fashion brand you will have to

  • sell incredibly high volumes in order to be profitable at all now if the

  • production costs start to increase for instance workers in Bangladesh get a law

  • that says that they have to be paid a living wage (it's not the case right now,

  • they work for a salary that they cannot live off of) let's assume their salary

  • increases (still not a high cost factor for the brand in the end, and we'll come

  • to that later) or the shoppers in said store in London are starting to demand

  • higher quality better ethics sustainable sourcing as a fast fashion brand you

  • will immediately lose your margin which is small and you will go bankrupt so

  • it's a very unstable system with very little buffer in case

  • something happens and something in the equation changes that it's just the

  • summary of how it works if you want to know more about how fast

  • fashion how the business model really functions from beginning to end I

  • recommend that you watch this video which I did previously

  • it's linked here and down below as well in there I explain among other things

  • the breakdown of the retail price of a t-shirt as an example how much the

  • government worker who saws it gets paid the retailer the transport the brand etc

  • if you new to that topic I have to warn you it might blow your minds but now

  • back to this video I want to move on to forever 21 which is the topic in the

  • title and it's absolutely a hundred percent a fast fashion label what

  • happened is that forever 21 failed at its own business model which is quite a

  • thing the American brand forever 21 filed for bankruptcy they are closing

  • about 350 stores worldwide out of 800 approximately they are practically

  • leaving Europe and Asia they are giving up their their remaining active in North

  • and South America but shrinking big time so it's really a setback for brand that

  • once was major they thing is the way they filed for bankruptcy doesn't mean

  • that they have to shut down the business it just means that they are freed of

  • their debts they don't have to pay the creditors so the supply chain people the

  • production people the suppliers won't get paid and if you know what I stand

  • for and what I talk about generally speaking on this channel you would know

  • what that makes me feel I'm mad when things like that happened I think it's

  • so unfair for the people who are before before that in the supply chain like

  • they always have the poor cards at the end of the day forever 21 was once known

  • for trendy fashion and very very low price tags

  • the problem is trends pass and once you've lost your cool competing on price

  • is not smart because it will never save you

  • if you're not cool people don't want to shop at your stores anymore

  • so forever21 is victim of the business model that they contributed to

  • establishing their brand was never really unique they lost the edge price

  • is irrelevant at the end of the day so they have to start over

  • does that mean that we're witnessing the beginning of the end of the first

  • fashion era unfortunately not quite yet Primark on the other side of the

  • Atlantic Ocean in Europe is still doing well

  • Primark is uk-based and currently leading the market for very very very

  • very cheap clothes directed mostly out of there a young target group teens

  • young adults dirt-cheap really we're talking about in British pounds 10

  • pounds for a pair jeans 250 for a bra 25 for coats if you think about it for a

  • minute you wonder how they even do it if you know the price levels in Europe it

  • seems so low that it's hard to be true I said cheap but I should say blood

  • cheap instead Primark is one of the brands that was having clothes produced

  • in the sadly famous Branagh Plaza building factory in Bangladesh that

  • building collapsed in 2013 killing over a thousand people and somehow Primark

  • and others got away with it Primark targets teens and young adults

  • how by relying heavily on the latest trends there's another UK former

  • flagship retail brand that's called Marks & Spencer where everybody in the

  • UK used to shop they didn't set enough on trends things Primark and they lost

  • their relevance because teens and young adults didn't want to shop well their

  • parents and grandparents were shopping so Primark is really trying to stay

  • relevant by going for the very very very young people and releasing new

  • collections all the time but now teens and young adults in Europe and

  • everywhere in the world are becoming more and more environmentally conscious

  • that's the greatest Wenberg effect and suddenly they're starting to research

  • and to question the way the fashion three works so a strategy question for

  • the future Primark how are you going to do in three years from now when your

  • exact target group is going to be a lot more aware and demanding in terms of the

  • clothes they're buying maybe they will turn towards more sustainable more

  • ethical brands and you will lose your relevance as well? Primark is aware of

  • the danger which is why recently they started the so-called sustainable line

  • which means that they source organic cotton what they don't tell you though

  • is that sustainable doesn't mean ethical it's a lot easier and a lot cheaper to

  • source sustainable materials for your production than to pay the government

  • workers properly and they say nothing about that it's completely untransparent

  • actually if you really want to do things right you need the sustainable sourcing

  • and you need fix in terms of how you do your production so it's really just a

  • marketing stunt meant to buy themselves an image of an ethical brand when really

  • it's actually one of the dirtiest players out there let me be really clear

  • about that and also this sustainable line is just a tiny part of their sort

  • and all the rest of what they sell all the basics is still sourced and produced

  • the way they used to do it and trust me it's not clean their sales keep

  • increasing yes they're doing fine for now but it's artificial growth it's

  • because they keep opening new stores overall it seems that the fast fashion

  • business model is starting to feel out of breath is overheating htm' has been

  • having difficulties it's one of the leaders in the market they launched a

  • new brand which is positioned as a more ethical sustainable we don't really know

  • thing Topshop is bankrupt in some parts of the world as well so it's really it

  • looks like it like a downward trend for most players so they're all looking for

  • solutions if consumers shoppers start to demand higher quality and higher ethics

  • is the solution than to shift to the other extreme and go luxury?... Barneys New York

  • is bankrupt as well if forever 21 and Primark are down here in terms of

  • pricing Barneys is is a it is the the epitome the most luxurious

  • high-end expensive department store chain in the US I studied in New York so

  • at my school they will always say that the holy grail for young fashion

  • designers starting out is to get into Barneys there was a professor who said

  • once in class getting to Barneys is the highest sign of recognition that you can

  • get from the industry if you get your clothes to get sold at Barneys together

  • with Vuitton Gucci Chanel etc it means that you've made it in fashion but you

  • know what I looked into it the conditions to get into stores like

  • Barneys as a designer or ridiculous they negotiate the prices super hard they

  • have you design special things special colors variations just for them they put

  • you on a rack there they won't promote you so unless you do the heavy lifting

  • no one will even know that you're being sold at Barneys and at the end of the

  • season if they haven't sold everything they force you by contract to buy your

  • inventory back so 100% of the risk and of the cash flow problems potentially is

  • on the side of the young designer and I always thought before I go knock on the

  • doors of big retailers like Barneys I'd rather sell my clothes directly the

  • fixed cost and the financial risk is a lot lower for me and the price tag will

  • be a lot lower so my clothes will also be more affordable for customers for

  • shoppers and this system seems like a much better option for everyone doesn't

  • it you would think that barn is selling high price high and high high things

  • would have huge margins and then also huge profits because it's the opposite

  • of what fast fashion is doing and yet behind that facade of the most luxurious

  • fashion experience they have bankrupt as well so where is the solution fast

  • fashion brands can't seem to be able to last on the long run it looks like the

  • system is overheating but on the other hand traditional retailers look like

  • they can't sell enough to survive either so that's that

  • so problem somewhere in the equation and that brings me to a question or I should

  • say an affliction that I get every time I talk about the topic of fast fashion

  • on this channel Justin you're saying that fast fashion is bad but you know

  • not everyone can afford Chanel and designer brands and I have a problem

  • with that argument because Primark is five dollars or pounds or euros whatever

  • shannon is mm are you telling me that you see no option in between because for

  • me the option is clearly in between it can't be the price of Primark because

  • that's not sustainable that's not ethical and I think that's not okay it

  • has to be more expensive than that and in Western countries we can afford more

  • we did afford more before the fast fashion labels existed and nobody was

  • going around wearing new clothes you know what I mean and then it doesn't

  • have to be as expensive as Chanel there is a lot of buffer in between and lots

  • of brands that are tackling different aspects it can be a safer more

  • sustainable sourcing system with Fairtrade labels it can be local

  • production it can be an ethical production based in Europe there are

  • plenty of options in between and I think the option is definitely in between now

  • I'd like to send a question back to you how much is in between how much are you

  • willing to pay for what more specifically and regardless of the brand

  • new looking up I'd love to know how much you would pay let's say for a cotton

  • t-shirt basic made in China how much would you pay for a t-shirt in

  • organic cotton made in Europe how much would you pay for a t-shirt in recycled

  • cotton made in China do you look at the tag does the origin or the material

  • influence the price that you're willing to pay are you willing to pay more for

  • organic for garment workers paid properly protected by European law for

  • instance are you willing to pay more because it's recycled or because it's a

  • new technology called development and you know it will be better for the

  • environment and why or why not I will read all your comments under this video

  • I will try to summarize all the inputs and the arguments you're writing down

  • and I will present the results of this little survey to you in a future video

  • so here really your opinion matters if you feel like you want to know more

  • about how the fashion industry works here and down below I have linked two

  • videos the first one is the one that I mentioned earlier about how the system

  • works and the price breakdown for a t-shirt and the other one is a video

  • where I explain how you can find out yourself if a brand is part of the fast

  • fashion system or not because spoiler forever 21 and Primark are by far not

  • the only ones out there and you have several fast fashion brands in every

  • country you can think of. Thumbs up if you watched until here! I will see you very soon in a new video, that's all from

  • me for today :-) Until next time, take care, bye!

Hi everyone, it's Justine. This year there has been a wave of fast fashion brands

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