THE FALL OF FAST FASHION
How Forever 21’s case reflects the shift in consumers’ behavior
Iam the type of girl who constantly asks others what they are wearing and where they shop. In high school, would ask every girl who came into a party, and every other girl would usually answer: Forever 21. It is (was?) a generationdefining fast fashion brand for many girls, filled with everything a high school girl would need, from crop tops to jumpsuits, from bodycon dresses to skinny and ripped jeans, within the limits of our typical student allowances.
I would envy these girls who found the patience to go through the racks and racks and piles and piles of clothing that seemed to feature every idea and design the Forever 21 corporate team could think of in every shade and color. Many young girls developed a notorious love-hate relationship with the company, which always had what you were looking for, if you were willing to search long and hard for it.
It has been reported that the 15 Forever 21 stores in the Philippines will continue operations, even in light of the parent Forever 21 company filing for bankruptcy in the US. Trends may come and go, and fashion brands are meant to follow, set, and forecast them. If they do not, they fall flat and fail. But is Forever 21 already a symbol of a bygone age, failing to follow not simply fashion trends, but social trends?
I grew past the Forever 21 high school age of most of its consumers, and did not think much of the brand in recent years—but neither has the new batch of high schoolers, their target demographic, which has now moved beyond Millenials to the Generation Z cohort.
I would like to think this signals a step forward in the fall of fast fashion, as fashion constitutes one of the greatest polluting industries in the world—that we as a society have recognized that what we wear takes on a greater meaning than its pattern, cut, and design. Clothing should be about the representation of our virtues and our beliefs, what we want people to know about us even before we open our mouths to tell them, whether it is our conscious decision to support local designers and weavers, to shop environmentally sustainable slow fashion pieces, or to upcycle and thrift. Forever 21, a global corporation with a long list of offenses and controversies, symbolized the complete opposite of many of those virtues for young consumers.
But perhaps fast fashion has simply taken on a new form, while its negative environmental and social impact has stayed the same.
The growth of online retailers has been considered a major factor in the downturn of Forever 21’s sales. Global fast fashion corporations like H&M and Inditex, which owns Zara, have begun to close down more physical stores as rent prices have increased while foot
Clothing should be about the representation of our virtues and our beliefs, what we want people to know about us even before we open our mouths to tell them.
traffic has lessened. Unlike Forever 21, however, they were able to grow and strengthen their online presence. Fast fashion has found a new home online, with easy (and sometimes even free) shipping right to your front door.
To me, the fall of Forever 21, a story so fresh, has two potential paths as to how it can play out in future business books. Will this be part of the story of how online retail continues to change the fashion industry and the marketplace? Or will this be part of the story of how societal consciousness and awareness of our environment changed our purchasing habits from fast to slow, sustainable fashion?
You, me, your friends, your family, your neighbors, strangers, everybody. We are all part of how this will play out, with every action we take and every choice we make.