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Written by: Andrew Trumble

Ultra Fast Fashion and Haul Culture

From fast to ultra-fast: how trend chasing became an environmental disaster

Fast fashion – ushered in during the 1990s by brands such as Zara, H&M, and Topshop, meant affordable “look-alike” items inspired by the latest catwalk trends. The appeal to shoppers was obvious, and fast-fashion houses became hugely profitable. However, the shortened trend cycles started an era of excessive production, consumption and waste.

A generation later, the rise of social media has changed how we do fashion. It’s no longer just catwalks that are driving trends, rather it’s online influencers. Trend cycles are no longer just shortened, they’re in a constant state of flux. As a result, fast fashion has been superseded by a new phenomenon – ultra-fast fashion.

Perhaps the most prominent ultra-fast fashion player is the Chinese firm, Shein. Functioning like an online marketplace, the company brings together roughly six thousand Chinese clothing factories under its own proprietary label. By producing huge numbers of low-cost, disposable items that tap into social-media micro-trends, the company has become an international powerhouse. Shipping to more than 150 countries, it has overtaken the likes of Zara to become the world’s most popular fashion label and ended 2022 with an incredible $100 billion in sales.

As well as taking its design cues from influencers, Shein also taps influencers to advertise their products. Indeed, so-called ‘Shein haul’ videos have become a social media staple. Influencers will typically begin them by displaying a newly arrived Shein box and quoting its low cost. Then, in a ‘making it rain’ style maneuver, they’ll tip out its contents, and express joy at the vast number of clothes they’ve obtained. The message is clear for the viewer: you can have this too! The problem is that these aren’t investment pieces. Rather, they are disposable, low-cost facsimiles designed to tide a wearer over until the next micro trend comes in. And once it does, you can bet previous hauls will be headed for the trash.


The pervasiveness today of ultra-fast fashion and its “haul” culture is being worryingly borne out by the statistics. In the 15 years to 2021, the number of times a garment was worn by a consumer declined 36%. From an environmental perspective, fewer wears and greater consumption means more textiles in landfills. It’s just one reason why ultra-fast fashion is being described as the most troubling story in fashion today. And while one might have presumed that ultra-fast fashion was a Gen-Z phenomenon, a recent study revealed that the average American Shein shopper is a 35-year-old who makes above-average claims about their sensitivity to the environment. If this is true, it would seem that for many Shein shoppers, ultra-fast fashion is a guilty habit. For the sake of the environment, it’s one we all need to quit.