What is the Fashion Revolution?

On April 24th of 2013, Rana Plaza, a garment factory in Bangladesh, tragically collapsed, killing and injuring thousands of low-paid workers. This deadly catastrophe shed light on the darkest corner of the fashion industry; horrendous working conditions and lack of efficient regulations came at the ultimate cost: innocent human life. The Fashion Revolution was born, a movement that promotes slow and ethical fashion, and creates awareness on the injustices that still happen today.

Fashion Revolution Week is an annual campaign bringing together the world’s largest fashion activism movement for seven days of action. This year, from Monday 18th-Sunday 24th April 2022, we will collectively reimagine a just and equitable fashion system for people and the planet.

Fast Fashion vs Slow Fashion

Slow fashion is the antidote to fast fashion. While fast fashion prioritizes proftis over people and planet, slow fashion prioritizes people and planet over profits. Slow fashion production schedules and collections made in small batches allow for thoughtful design and joyful working conditions. The use of sustainable materials like renewable fibers, and sustainable packaging like compostable bags or recycled boxes, prevents post-consumer toxic waste from entering our landfills and oceans. Handmade items are carbon neutral, and often zero-waste. Fair payment and safe working conditions ensure that the health and well-being of the makers are prioritized. Full control over the supply chain makes it easy to uphold these policies, and brand transparency connects the consumer to the mission and purpose of slow fashion brands. The priority is ethics over profits. Slow fashion brands are not rushing to get mass produced items to market; items are lovingly and thoughtfully crafted, resulting in high quality pieces made to last.

Hold Brands Accountable

Although the slow fashion movement is steadily gaining momentum, global fashion consumption continues to grow at an unsustainable rate and relies on the culture of fast fashion. There is an obvious lack of transparency in the fast fashion industry, and we are long overdue in holding major fashion brands accountable. Ask brands to publish clear information about how and where clothes and accessories are made, who made them, where the materials come from, and what the working conditions are.

The Fashion Revolution website has a thorough list of resources to help you get involved, including an email template for communicating with brands, creative digital assets to share on social, educational resources, and more.

Add an MZ Handbag to your Capsule Wardrobe!

One of the most effective ways to participate in the #FashionRevolution - and move away from fast fashion toward slow fashion - is to build a capsule wardrobe. A capsule wardrobe consists of a limited selection of pieces in your entire closet. The philosophy behind this idea is that less is more, and quality takes priority over quantity, as well as ethical production. Although buying ethically-made items means paying more, in time you'll find that slowly investing in higher quality, long-lasting pieces that make a positive impact on the makers, and leave a low carbon footprint, is much more rewarding in the long run.

MZ handbags make great additions to any capsule wardrobe! Lovingly handmade by master weavers of high-quality materials, they're perfect for everyday use and bring unique artistry to your ethical wardrobe.