So you know how I said this blog will only deal with how I manage through my ethical fashion journey and that I would only show you my DIYs and etc.? Well this story recently emerged and I think it's important I cover it. You may have heard about this recently: the photo above is (supposedly) the tag a Primark customer found in the £10 dress she purchased in the store (source). 

After this story came up, another Primark customer came forward with a similar label found in a top last year.



Obviously we need to give Primark the benefit of the doubt  since there is no tangible proof this was done in their factories (it could have been stitched after the dress & the top left the factory), but considering their overseas labour history, it does not sound good for the brand...

This reminds me of this Cameroonian man stuck in a Chinese prison and forced to work in a factory, who sent several letters for help in both French and English, one was found in September 2012 in a shopping bag by a Saks Fifth Avenue customer in New York (source). The man also complained about exhausting hours and wrote "We are ill-treated and work like slaves for 13 hours every day producing these bags in bulk in the prison factory".

And these are just a few of the stories that leak out to us Western consumers.

That's why I find it important to try to consume more responsibly. That does not mean completely abandoning your lifestyle (like I did!) and solely purchasing ethically-made clothes, but be more aware of what you buy, where it's from and what that might imply.

I know you might think 'this won't make any change so why bother?', but if everybody exhibited a more responsible consumption pattern and demanded more from brands, surely some change would occur. Because after all, brands give consumers what they ask for, i.e. nowadays, cheap clothes straight from the runway and that can be bought frequently, hence the 2 weeks turnover of clothes in shops like Zara. Fast Fashion in brief.

And didn't Gandhi say 'Be the change you want to see in the world' after all? How about the saying that there is strength in numbers?

A more concrete example: Nike is now one of the most responsible (labour & environment) brands and a leader in its industry, and how did that happen? After consumers boycotted their brand and manifested against their sweatshops and the use of child labour in the late 90s. Nike's sales dramatically dropped at this point and the brand was forced to give consumers what they wanted to come back in #1 position. I'm not saying they're perfect but since that they've tried quite hard to operate more responsibly.

Anyways, we never know, those stories about those stitched labels blowing the whistle on poor labour practices might be hoaxes. But if we're honest with ourselves, we know this is still a reality for numerous people around the world. So think about it next time you want to buy that cute top, will you? :)