I have a college professor that would hate me if she read this.
One of the things she earnestly tried to drive into our heads that semester was how bad fast fashion was for the fashion industry. She was so passionate about this idea that we spent the first couple of weeks of the course reading Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion.
Fast fashion: contemporary term used to describe retailers that gather trends from major design houses, produce those designs in half the time (usually with lesser quality fabric), and sell the products for a fraction of the original sale price. Industry leaders believe fast fashion disrupts the distribution channel and violates rights designers should have for their own unique designs. Statistics also show thats these types of retailers can be blamed for the low wage problems in several third world countries (as most fast fashion brands own their own factories overseas) and harms the planet by creating products with short lifespans (which ultimately makes up a sizable fraction of our country’s waste).
*The book is actually a really good read. If you are a lover of style and fashion or just curious how your shopping decisions affect the world, you should grab a copy!*
Fast fashion stores would include (but are not limited to): Forever 21, TopShop, ASOS, H&M, pretty much every single Instagram boutique,…and Zara.
But don’t get it twisted. The industry can’t disregard Zara or fast fashion quickly, at all. Earnings proved that this market space is the most profitable recently when Zara, a Spanish based company, became the biggest retailer in the world with more than 2,100 stores worldwide and a nearly 73 billion dollar net worth and a public stock on the rise.
But the reason I’d hurt my professor would be because, while in New York for fashion week, the only store I had a chance to pop into was Zara (the one of 5th ave aka the best one). I felt so horrible.I’m in New York City to celebrate the release of work by world renowned designers and I made a purchase at a store that could one day halt the rise in new designer labels. I couldn’t stop thinking about the book the entire time I shopped.
But to be honest…I’m sooooo happy I went in! This season, Zara has a several super cute shoes that range from athleisure sneakers to cute winter boots. I use to be afraid of fast fashion shoes, being that they’re notorious for being made of cheap material, but when I arrived at my friend’s apartment she had a handful of shoes from Zara alined along her baseboard and I couldn’t resist.
If I had more room in my suitcase I probably would have grabbed a few more. But I had to make a decision so I decided on these because mules are so on trend right now, these because I’ve been searching for a pair of red flats, and these because I know the I’ll be so happy I grabbed them as soon as I take my next to the Caribbean!
Here are a few other pairs that I wanted but didn’t grab. The good thing is there’s still time!!
These would be perfect for those days you have a lot of running around to do, but you still want to be chic!
These or these are such a necessary shoe for fall. The can be dressed up with a little black dress and some pearls or down with a pair of skinny jeans and a girly white top. I’ve been eying a pair of velvet pointed toe bow heels from Prada, but the options form Zara are much more cost effective.
These because you really do need something velvet for fall, and blue velvet is just so fun! The ribbon adds something a little special.
These because I love the color and I’m always trying to add more casual shoes to my closet.
These because I think these would be great travel shoes with a pair of skinny jeans and a long, thick gray or ivory coat.
These because everyone needs a sleek brown boot!
And these, because they look like the casual version to the Aquazzura “Wild Thing” heels I own…and I love those shoes!!!
Check out their entire collection and you’ll understand why I seriously hate that I live so far away from a decent Zara… sorry I’m not sorry!
