How To Pitch Sustainable Fashion in Five Minutes
Have you ever wanted to explain sustainable fashion to someone but didn’t know where to start? It can seem like a big and daunting topic to dive into when someone asks you to explain it in a couple of minutes. I’ve certainly had moments where my mind blanked out and I had to helplessly jumble a badly phrased explanation together. You might want to consider preparing a sustainable fashion pitch to help in these types of situations. This has allowed me to have a clear idea of what to explain, a go-to strategy to project my knowledge and to have the confidence to ignite a conversation around sustainable fashion. You never know when sustainable fashion will come up and you may just have five minutes to explain it. Try the following tips to form your unique sustainable fashion pitch to spread awareness wherever you go!
1. Define Sustainable Fashion
Consider starting off by defining sustainable fashion. This is important because the average consumer is not informed about issues in the fashion industry and its sustainable alternatives. Choose one definition of sustainable fashion that you most identify with. This is important because there is not a set definition for sustainable fashion. This is an area that may get confusing so feel free to clarify related terms such as “slow fashion”, “ethical fashion”, “conscious fashion”, “circular fashion”, “green fashion”, “upcycled fashion” and “fair fashion”. It could be useful to distinguish the nuances and subtle differences between them. Just bear in mind how much time you have to explain each term since it could be time-consuming if it becomes too extensive. All the while, consider adapting and/or expanding the pitch based on how engaged and curious the person you are talking seems to be. You don’t want to overload someone with information if they don’t seem to be paying attention.
Example:
Thanks for asking what sustainable fashion is all about! Sustainable fashion is basically a philosophy of how to design, produce, consume and dispose of clothing in a way that addresses the environmental and social issues we face in society. This is really important because we all make an impact through the choices we make. From business owners to consumers, we all can alter our actions in small ways, which can make real change in creating a new and better future. This is what makes sustainable fashion a concept that can be embraced and applied differently by everyone! It pushes current status quos by fostering a deeper relationship with people, earth and the clothing we wear every day.
2. Explain Problems in Fast Fashion
After explaining sustainable fashion, break down the problems around fashion so people will understand why it is so important. It may not be obvious to some people that we are in a climate crisis and that the fashion industry is deeply rooted in exploitative practices. This can be communicated by choosing a couple of issues in the fashion industry you want to mention. It may become too overwhelming for someone to hear all the problems at once when they are first learning about fast fashion.
To discuss the social issues in fashion, you can choose to explain the exploitation garment workers go through in sweatshops, how workers are not paid a fair, living wage, the various inhumane working conditions, and the methods used to strip workers of their human rights. In terms of environmental issues, you can provide insight into the large amount of virgin resources needed to make clothing, how brands burn their unsold and returned clothing, and the large amount of clothing thrown away to landfills each year.
Example:
Sustainable fashion is important to avoid fast fashion, which is a garment manufacturing model that designs, produces and ships cheap clothing at a rapid pace. This means that brands are releasing new collections every week at the cost of their garment workers. Since fast fashion needs to make new things really fast, it makes them the victims of high production targets. They are forced to work 10-16 hours a day, are not always guaranteed a lunch break and experience abuse by their bosses. And all this fast production of clothing is being purchased by people that will only wear it a couple of times. This means that 85% of all textiles will end up in the landfill every year, which is one garbage truck full of clothing being dumped or burned every second. And the fashion industry is actually the second-largest consumer of the world’s water supply, it pollutes the ocean with microplastics and produces 10% of all of the world’s carbon emissions.
3. Call to Action
After explaining sustainable fashion and fast fashion, the person you are talking to may be wondering what they can do now. They may feel compelled by this information and may want to take action. You can give them a couple of easy options to get started. It will be helpful to state the benefits of these actions so they know their impact before they start. This can include explaining how much money they will save, the amount of virgin resources they are preserving and how they are positively impacting people around the world.
Example:
Considering all the bad effects of fashion, you can embrace sustainable fashion by first asking “who made my clothes?”. This question can help you start thinking about what clothing means to you, why you choose the clothing in your wardrobe and the process in which your clothing had to go through to reach you. You can also start mending your clothing so that they can last longer, wearing your clothing longer instead of throwing them away and donating your clothing to local and charitable thrift stores. This could allow you to spend less money on new clothing and to save garments from entering the landfill. And you can always boycott fast fashion to no longer support the devastating effects it has on people and earth. No matter what you decide to do, make sure to be intentional. It does not have to be a huge change to make a difference. See what you can do and start from there.
Combine It All Together
Once you have these three steps down, you will be able to have a general guide to pitch sustainable fashion. Consider altering each step in this post to your liking. The real point is that you have an idea on how to clearly explain sustainable fashion. Take the time to practice your pitch to perfect your craft. You never know who will be inspired to join the community!
Final Pitch Example:
Thanks for asking what sustainable fashion is all about! Sustainable fashion is basically a philosophy of how to design, produce, consume and dispose of clothing in a way that addresses the environmental and social issues we face in society. This is really important because we all make an impact through the choices we make. From business owners to consumers, we all can alter our actions in small ways, which can make real change in creating a new and better future. This is what makes sustainable fashion a concept that can be embraced and applied differently by everyone! It pushes current status quos by fostering a deeper relationship with people, earth and the clothing we wear every day.
Sustainable fashion is important to avoid fast fashion, which is a garment manufacturing model that designs, produces and ships cheap clothing at a rapid pace. This means that brands are releasing new collections every week at the cost of their garment workers. Since fast fashion needs to make new things really fast, it makes them the victims of high production targets. They are forced to work 10-16 hours a day, are not always guaranteed a lunch break and experience abuse by their bosses. And all this fast production of clothing is being purchased by people that will only wear it a couple of times. This means that 85% of all textiles will end up in the landfill every year, which is one garbage truck full of clothing being dumped or burned every second. And the fashion industry is actually the second-largest consumer of the world’s water supply, it pollutes the ocean with microplastics and produces 10% of all of the world’s carbon emissions.
Considering all the bad effects of fashion, you can embrace sustainable fashion by first asking “who made my clothes?”. This question can help you start thinking about what clothing means to you, why you choose the clothing in your wardrobe and the process in which your clothing had to go through to reach you. You can also start mending your clothing so that they can last longer, wearing your clothing longer instead of throwing them away and donating your clothing to local and charitable thrift stores. This could allow you to spend less money on new clothing and to save garments from entering the landfill. And you can always boycott fast fashion to no longer support the devastating effects it has on people and earth. No matter what you decide to do, make sure to be intentional. It does not have to be a huge change to make a difference. See what you can do and start from there.