Time for an overhaul

Step 1. Hold a pile of clothes or unopened package close to face. Step 2. While holding said items, appear overly enthusiastic for thumbnail. Step 3. Talk for the next 10-15 minutes about an excessive amount of clothing you have bought. Step 4. Prepare returns label.

It is okay to dislike things you see on the internet. Examples for me include, but not limited to: Crocs, skinny jeans, ripped jeans, TikTok dances and clicking fingers in an Instagram reel to *magically* change an outfit. The list could go on, but for me at the moment I find it hard to ignore that YouTube fashion hauls continue to be a video format that still exist. As millennials we grew up on a strict diet of consumerism and a side of MTV cribs. The space age text overlay and swoosh effects would precede the five-bedroom houses with walk-in wardrobes. The floor to ceiling shoe wall and the endless rail of clothes. And while YouTube is not an MTV scale production, hauls follow the same principles of glorifying unattainable levels of “stuff”. 

Type in fashion haul and it returns 66.6m search results. 666 is a coincidence, right? A large percentage of which would have been created in the last twelve months, a year where we have experienced so much, as well as learn more than ever about the issues of the whole supply chain and structures of fashion conglomerates (read: high street retailers refusing to pay for completed orders during a pandemic and causing many factories to shut). A creator may put live a video about one fast fashion brand on Monday and another on Friday, clicking buy on multiple tabs with little thought as to whether it is something they would keep or already own all in the name of content. 

We need to look behind the curtain of a fast fashion haul and what they contribute to. Unneeded use of single-use packaging, promoting clothing made in unknown working conditions and the uncomfortable knowledge that a large percentage of returned clothes to retailers are discarded rather than repackaged. Videos align quantity and a small price tag as a good thing. We are buying more and wearing less and creating a climate where the worth of clothing becomes very little. This is the fast fashion merry-go-round.downicon

ILLUSTRATIONS BY JACK HOLLAND

It might be the faux niceties of it all that causes me to have my guard up. Telling someone to grab a drink, settle in and to sit through 15 minutes of what is effectively a QVC showreel. Phrases like “my absolute favourite”, “super-affordable” and “I’m going to get lots of wear out of this” - which let’s face it is a lie - could all be grouped together in order to create a fashion haul phrases edition of bingo due to the repetitive nature in which they are reused for the next video and the video after that. The soft sell pleasantries and naivety of most creators in my eyes is an implicit attempt at covering up the damage fast fashion does. YouTubers are tastemakers that audiences trust, including the trust of where they should spend their money. The YouTube platform is a place which creates community - something especially needed during lockdown - but a reset as to what the contents of a video should focus on to bring fashion fans together needs to be considered. A haul video plays its part in a high-street hierarchy that is about overproduction and overconsumption to appease shareholders and their tunnel vision for growth. I understand the need for clothes at an accessible price point, yet haul culture normalises excess. 

As I have become older my views continue to change. While a younger version of myself may have raised a smile at hearing someone say “I have nothing to wear” in front of a wardrobe full of clothes, the same words have now turned into a loaded phrase that normalises a problem of an obsession for newness, where it’s probably quicker to buy something new than it is to find something under the mound of clothes growing in the corners of bedrooms, boxes and attics.  

With 1.1m tonnes of clothing being consumed each year in the UK and the lifespan of clothing only averaging 10 wears before being discarded, the elephant in the room is why are we continuing to validate a format that is part of the problem? If the fashion haul is to come to an end then creators must reassess the responsibility to their audience and consumers must find a way to stop watching them, however clickbait the title might be. It might be easy to point fingers towards those who benefit from affiliate links and the current model, but all sides need to play their part. The high number of minutes being clocked up and increased sales figures towards the end of last year by hyper fast fashion brands lead me to say we are not in an environment wanting to change. 

Sometimes I feel like a boring supply teacher meets fashion drillmaster when I have something to say on consumption or sustainability, but the reason for this is that I feel clothes should be enjoyed and in this current model of buy, buy, buy, they are not. Take a step back from what’s become a very worryingly perpetuated norm by YouTubers and spend less time hovering over the checkout button. You’ll feel much better for it and maybe you’ll rediscover the clothes that were at the bottom of the once untouched pile.

How does it go again? “So, you’ve visited my website, you have read my blog post, now make sure you avoid the fashion hauls on the way out. Thanks MTV.”jbicon