Do a Little Dance

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 shan’t be making any new years resolutions, enough sacrifices have been made, good riddance to our collective annus horribilis.

Looking forward into 2021 it feels wrong to focus on trends alone, the demise of Topshop, once the jewel in Arcadia Groups crown is a stark reminder that the face of the fashion industry is changing, While the younger generations still flock to fast websites in their droves, attracted by their cheap as chips prices, unperturbed by murky supply chains and the environmental impact of mass fashion consumption, older consumers are speaking with their feet, spending their hard earned money in shops that better represent them, i am a millennial (born between 1981 - 2000) by the skin of my teeth 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 sustainable App. Save your Wardrobe shows you how to photograph your clothes to turn it virtual and categorising it into useful departments so you can browse your wardrobe at the click of a button avoiding unnecessary or duplicate purchases.

I hope in the future we give more credit to the maker, the term “handmade” is often reserved for artisan or crafts people, but i would like for 2021 to be the year that we remember all of our clothes are handmade, machines may play a part, but regardless of wether its one person working alone embroidering a collar, or an assembly line of people constructing multiple garments, humans operate the sewing machines, patterns are cut by hand, and each and everyone of those people should be recognised and paid fairly.

And finally, returns, if you have ever read 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, save their disappointment. Small things, big differences.