Consumer Shifts Disrupting the Fashion Industry
Discover the Three Factors Impacting Fashion Consumption Trends
“You think this has nothing to do with you.” - Miranda Priestly, played by Meryl Streep
This quote comes from an iconic monologue in the 2006 film The Devil Wears Prada. In it, Miranda Priestley's character explains to her assistant, Andrea Sachs, how fashion trends are developed. She dismantles the idea that fashion is frivolous, using a cerulean sweater as an example of how even the least fashion-conscious shopper is still complicit in the fashion system.
Nearly two decades later, this still holds true. Luxury designers act as tastemakers of the fashion trend cycle. Except now, we’re understanding how fashion consumption is not just a matter of taste, but deeper societal shifts. Influenced by consumers who are navigating economic uncertainty, ethics in consumption, and the ease of online shopping.
In this post, we’ll explore three key factors driving the shift in fashion consumption today and gain a deeper understanding of how the economy and social changes affect the fashion landscape.
Economic Turmoil Reshaped Fashion Habits
With inflation and the cost-of-living pressures hitting the newsfeeds every day, shoppers have reevaluated where their money is best spent.
Insights from Mckinsey Consumerwise Global Sentiment Survey, April-May 2025
As budgets tighten, clothing is one of the first discretionary expenses to be cut. In Q1 of 2025, consumer spending on apparel and footwear dropped by 22% compared to the end of 2024. This doesn’t mean people have stopped buying into fashion, but rather indicates prioritizing affordability.
The Paradox of Social Media and Affordable Fashion
Ironically, social media has made it harder for people to consume less. As platforms like TikTok and Instagram push new trends weekly, it’s shifted the traditional 2-season format into 52 microseasons a year. Heightened by celebrities and influencers who can afford every new aesthetic, consumers feel as if their wardrobe must constantly be reinvented to stay relevant.
The result of economic concerns and keeping up with trends has led to the rise of fast fashion and single-wear garments. For consumers who can’t afford to spend on nonessentials, brands like Shein and Temu allow them to purchase the social media hyped clothes at a staggering low cost. Even on TikTok, fast fashion brands can directly integrate their products into promoted videos that lead users to buy within the app's shopping platform.
Sustainability and Value Alignment
For the consumers who buy into fast fashion, the clothing still comes at a cost. One that doesn’t hurt your wallet, but instead infringes on values. As fast fashion consumers turn to it for affordability, they’re met with an ethical dilemma surrounding the industry's exploitative labor and massive environmental tolls.
The apparel production industry is the most labor-intensive, employing 75 million factory workers worldwide, but only 2% make a livable wage.
35% of all microplastics in the ocean come from the laundering of synthetic textiles, like polyester and nylon, all found most notably in fast fashion pieces
As environmental advocacy is reaching the mainstream, NRF reports a surge in younger generations seeking more sustainable alternatives. For 80% of consumers, ages 18-34, they are willing to pay more and look for sustainable product options, but over half of all U.S consumers think they are too expensive.
Secondhand: The Perfect Middle Ground
Balancing both environmental consciousness and economic downturn, secondhand shopping has become a solution. According to a report by eBay, 86% of global consumers bought or sold secondhand in 2024. It solves the issue of affordability and allows consumers to shop freely without worrying if what they're buying fits their ethics.
Global survey from eBay’s 2024 Recommerce Report
It ticks many boxes that consumers consider, but also fulfills their need for quality. Fast fashion has normalized clothes that are made with synthetic material that won’t hold up due to their low-cost production. By choosing quality over quantity, it's an indicator that consumers prioritize durability over disposability.
Read about Fashion’s Circular Models of Clothing Ownership: A Deep Dive into Resale, Rental, and Subscription Boxes
Online Shopping: Convenience With Consequences
As fashion retailers adjust to the shift in values and consumer expectations change, there is another trend in consumption that impacts e-commerce. As shopping online is the norm, consumers are buying and returning at unprecedented rates. In 2024, returned goods accounted for $890 billion in lost merchandise sales, a staggering jump from the $428 billion lost in 2020.
A major key to understanding why returns occur is the phenomenon called bracketing. This is where people order multiple sizes and colors of the same item with the intent to return. In a report on bracketing, nearly 58% of consumers admit to this practice.
Two main problems drive return rates:
Sizing Inconsistencies: 42% of consumers cited size and fit issues as the main reason for their last return. The lack of standardized sizing makes figuring out your size for each retailer a more time-consuming task, so buyers would rather order a variety of sizes to see in person.
The Ease of Returns: Many brands have offered simple return processes, like free in-person returns that allow consumers to buy without the consequences of having to spend time and money shipping an item back.
Instant Gratification, Delayed Regret
The frictionless process of online shopping makes impulse buying easier with one-click checkouts, same-day shipping, and buy now, pay later options. In Capital One’s Shopping report, it cited that 55% of all impulse buying comes from the clothing sector. This high level of convenience encourages consumers to spend without thinking about whether they truly need the item.
This is equal parts the digital convenience and social media's encouragement of overconsumption. Through fashion hauls, social media creators have helped romanticize overconsumption. What may appear as just shopping videos are often strategic, backed by affiliate links and brand sponsorships that reward creators for promoting as many products as possible. For the average consumer, these hauls don’t just showcase clothing; they sell a lifestyle, fueling the desire to buy more than necessary to keep up.
Fashion Rental as the Return Fix
As product returns continue to undercut fashion retail profits, costing the industry nearly $860 billion each year. Brands are being forced to rethink how to meet evolving consumer expectations without sacrificing revenue.
Fashion rental services offer a scalable and sustainable answer to the rising “try-before-you-buy” behavior shaping online shopping. Rather than depending on one-time purchases that often end in costly returns, the rental model allows a single garment to generate recurring revenue by circulating through multiple consumers. This circular fashion approach not only supports consumer demand for variety, fit, and experimentation but also reduces the burden of reverse logistics. By embracing rental fashion, brands can turn the return cycle into a revenue opportunity while encouraging more flexible and intentional shopping.
Read about the Business of Borrowing: Insights into Four Fashion Rental Models
The Future of Fashion Consumption
Fashion consumption today is a balancing act. Consumers are becoming increasingly complex, weighing cost and conscience, trend and timelessness, ease and responsibility. While they may not be spending less overall, they’re spending differently, leaning into secondhand shopping, scrutinizing brands for transparency, and rethinking what it means to buy well.
This shift is forcing brands to adapt, not just with lower prices or faster shipping, but with transparency, durability, and value alignment. Whether it’s through secondhand platforms, wardrobe rental, or smarter sizing technology, the future of fashion will be defined by how well it listens to the evolving needs of its audience.
