Would you like some clothes with your packaging?

One of my interests is fashion. I enjoy browsing through different styles, trying on clothes and admittedly buying a fair few items. However, the fashion industry has a fair way to go in terms of environmental impact.

I recently placed an order through an online-only retailer. I ordered three items, and received my packet. Sounds good so far? 

Well, to my surprise, I not only receive three items, but also four plastic bags. I received more plastic than product. Now, I can understand that in terms of warehousing logistics, having every item individually packaged is fairly effective and reduces order times however, it is excessive.

However, not only does the packaging of clothing lead to a large amount of waste, the discarding of clothes is equally as damaging to the environment. Research conducted presents that 68 pounds of clothing is thrown away per person per year in America (Read more here).

Therefore, it is important that we move ahead as individuals and organisations to become more sustainable in our clothing purchases. Energy, material recovery and product re-use (Found here) are core to a number of government policies that are designed to reduce the wastefulness of the clothing industry. Brands such as H&M have sustainability at the forefront of their vision with the idea of a circular product life cycle being highly important. I personally hope other brands take a page out of their book and strive towards this. 

What do you think?