By Abigail Gocek OMAHA, Neb.- The world of fast fashion is ever-changing with new trends replacing old ones at increasing speed. The answering slow fashion movement can trace its roots back centuries, with the modern focus on sustainable wardrobes emerging heavily in the early 2000’s, according to the American University of Paris.
Uniform Market states that fast fashion consumers typically only wear garments 7 to 10 times before trashing them or donating. According to Vogue, donation of textiles meant for charity in both the United States and the United Kingdom is often sent to be sold in markets in the Global south where anything that is not purchased goes to landfills or the ocean
Traditionally, fashion trends emerged as designers unveiled new designs for each spring/summer and autumn/winter season. Today, the push to remain stylish is heavily pushed through social media and fast fashion, with clothing stores constantly updating their selections weekly. Social media has played a large part in the explosion of micro-trends that capture enormous audiences only to fizzle out and be replaced by something new in as little as a few days, reports Good On You.
Conscious Collections Fest Coordinator Lauren Bates says the pressure to be fashionable has changed the way people view clothing.
“It used to be that we would purchase only a few things a year, like maybe five items and so we would invest in those items,” said Bates. “Now we’ve kind of shifted the narrative of clothing being disposable, not as investment pieces.”
While fast fashion continues to dominate mainstream fashion markets, the demand for sustainable fashion alternatives has seen a sharp increase. The American University of Paris states that the slow fashion movement can be traced back to the 1970’s but it wasn’t until the early 2000’s that it received the name or recognition it has today. A 2025 worldwide survey by Statista reports over 70 percent of respondents consider sustainability when purchasing clothing.
The slow fashion movement has garnered entire communities centered around ethical fashion. The Omaha Conscious Collections Fest focuses on sustainable fashion by emphasizing thrifting, mending and upcycling clothing rather than buying new. Leah Miles, owner of Shipment Vintage, says the festival started last year as a small fashion show.
“We did the first one and it was like, really a hit. Like we just had our friends as models and it was truly just for our own enjoyment,” said Miles. “Like we just wanted to do something fun and it took off.”
The United States Environmental Protection Agency reports 11 million tons of textiles were delivered to landfills in 2018. Fashion designer and owner of Albany and Avers Amanda Failla Tjarks says she strives to combat this by emphasizing vintage clothing as an alternative.
“I’m so happy to be involved with this community because it is such a great community of amazing, creative people doing amazing things in Omaha,” said Tjarks.
