Watkinson
HIGH HOPES FOR 2021
ORDINARILY I would use this column to reflect upon the year gone by, but I think the last thing any of us wants to do is look back and relive 2020. I also won’t be making any New Year resolutions.
Enough sacrifices have been made, and good riddance to our collective annus horribilis.
Looking forward into 2021 it feels wrong to focus on trends alone, the fall of Topshop, once the jewel in Arcadia Group’s crown, is a stark reminder that the face of the fashion industry is changing.
While the younger generations still flock to fast fashion websites, attracted by the cheap-as-chips prices, unperturbed by murky supply chains and the environmental impact of mass fashion consumption, older consumers are speaking with their wallets and spending their hardearned money in shops that better represent them.
So, here are my fashion hopes for 2021: I hope that the giant pause button that was pressed on our social lives has meant we look at our existing clothes in a different light, like they are new again. New app Save Your Wardrobe lets you photograph your clothes, to turn images virtual and categorise them into departments meaning you can browse your wardrobe at the click of a button. No more unnecessary or duplicate purchases.
I also hope in the future that we give more credit to the maker. The term “handmade” is often reserved for artisan or crafts people, but I would like 2021 to be the year that we remember all of our clothes are handmade.
Machines may play a part, but regardless of whether it’s one person embroidering a collar, or an assembly line of people putting together multiple garments, humans operate the sewing machines, patterns are cut by hand, and each and every one of those people should be recognised and paid fairly.
And finally, returns. You know that saying that each time you buy from a small business a person does a happy dance? Well think about how they feel when you return something. Maybe spend a little longer deciding, save the postage, save the carbon footprint and save their disappointment.
Small things, big differences.