Cameron Isliker

Generation Z, or Gen Z encompasses the entire population born between the years  ‘96 and ‘10. (McKinsey&Company,2023) Gen Z,  growing up within the technological boom and sculpted by a digital age paired with an overwhelming amount of anxieties and many different agendas surrounding climate and its knock on effect on the planet has made this generation the supposed new “woke” gen.(McKinsey&Company,2019)  This generation is  noticeably taking over the entirety of the social media industry as “influencers” for the youth handing out advice which shifts the behavior of the consumer. Moreover, gen z have changed their shopping habits, asserting their beliefs by favoring brands which have aligned a set of own values which correspond with the gen z core values that support longevity and sustainability. In order to captivate the generation brands must focus on racial justice and sustainability in order to both protect and support the environment. 

Building a fashion brand is never straightforward or simple. However, having certain people skills within a team in order to become sustainable and successful is one of the most important choices to make when starting off creating a team. You need technological skills, marketing, designing and interpersonal skills. All these skills help with different things; software, selling a product more productively and advertising, product designing and the interpersonal skills in order to approach new customers and become a likable contact.  

Generation Z accounts for 40% of global consumers by the year 2020, with a spending power in the United States alone to be roughly 150 billion with an estimated ⅔ of the consumers would boycott or avoid any company who does not meet social or environmental issues.(McKinsey&Company,2019) Knowing the power carried within this generation it is vital for brands to find a way in order to captivate this new generation into buying. For example, Calvin Klein. In the ‘90s the moto “sex sells” was driven by prominent figures such as Kate Moss and Mark Wahlberg, portrayed half nude in a way to generate sales. Stirring up controversy among the community of objectifying women and men alike their ideology has shifted over the past 30 years to now in 2020 shifting their beliefs and goals into being 100% sustainable by 2025 and focusing on inclusivity in regions like body size, gender and race. Using “plus size in modeling campaigns.   (Vogue, Nicole Phelps 2015)

The fashion industry is the world’s second-largest environmental polluter. The industry accounts for an estimated 10% of global pollution, higher than air travel. When including all factors of the fashion industry, the number of carbon emissions released comes to a staggering 1.2 billion tonnes every year. Furthermore, it is known that the fashion industry alone is responsible for an approximated 20% of global wastewater. (BBC,2020)

A circular economy is an economic system that is based on reusing and regenerating materials, mainly put in place as a means of continuing production in a sustainable way. Within fashion, the system is described as the process of when the same piece of clothing is multi-purposed, maximizing the value of each piece to its potential. Once clothes reach the end of their lifespan, projected to be 2-10 years the clothing would then finally be repurposed. Facilities would use the recycled clothes in order to be utilized in different products such as  pillows or blankets. However, while a circular economy may be a better option than producing new clothes, it has its own flaws. Energy consumption and Wastewater production. Both needed in order to re-washing and un-spinning clothing. (TheGuardian, 2019) 

There are 2 SDGs which have a great relevance and impact on the fashion industry: SDG 9, based on Industry, Innovation and infrastructure; SDG 12, responsible consumption and production. SDG  9, the main SDG surrounding fashion as the issues of fashion are deep-seated in its industry and the system itself. The industry was systematically designed to be an industrial machine to produce more for less by sacrificing the lives of many people and the health of our surrounding planet. The  goal is to create a path that shows the industry the possibility to untangle its inequality and improve the lack of sustainable infrastructure. SDG 12 conveys that high-income countries leave larger CO2 footprints than low. The material footprint of clothing is 10 times that of a low-income country. It is vital to mention that the average water footprint for 1 kg of cotton, or a pair of jeans and a shirt consumes between 10,000-20,000 liters. While Pakistan and Uzbekistan are suffering from water scarcity, they supply the fashion industry with cotton. (ThreadingChange, 2022)

Threading Change (2022a) SDG 9: Building Resilient Infrastructure, Inclusivity, Sustainable Industrialization and Innovation, Threading Change. 

The Five: Ways that fashion threatens the planet (2019) The Guardian. 

Goal 12 | Department of Economic and Social Affairs (2023) United Nations.Fashion and the circular economy (no date) How to Build a Circular Economy.