CURATED READS FOR GEN Z—AND THEIR Z-CURIOUS COLLEAGUES

Welcome back! This Friday is Earth Day—in honor, check out the sustainable-fashion landscape. 

first up

Fashion is one of the top three categories for Gen Z splurges. But there’s a real divide: half the fashion posts I see are people modeling gorgeous thrifted finds, and half are massive fast-fashion hauls. We’re split on high-quality, long-lasting “slow fashion” versus the cheap, trendy clothes that are quickly made—and just as quickly discarded.

(Interested in the industry more broadly? See the trends that matter in our The State of Fashion 2022 report.)

It’s no secret that fast fashion is a major market—the ultra-fast-fashion player Shein introduces more than 6,000 new products per day. But all those clothes have a major carbon impact, too. The industry emits the same amount of greenhouse gases as the economies of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom combined.

What happens to all those clothes? Our new report on sustainable fashion offers this stunning stat: in 2020, Californians bought 510,000 to 530,000 tons of clothing, and 500,000 tons will eventually end up in landfills.

So, definitely some room for improvement. The good news for the industry and the planet: people are paying attention, and new, more sustainable models could be picking up. Our Next Normal series on the future of fashion highlights a few greener paths:

That concept of circular fashion—keeping clothes in circulation or clothes being reused or recycled into new products—will be a big part of making fashion greener. Consumers want sustainable-first and ethically made products; nine out of ten members of Gen Z think companies should play their part.

And sustainability efforts are needed ASAP: to stay on track and mitigate climate change, the fashion industry needs to cut greenhouse-gas emissions to about 1.1 billion metric tons by 2030, roughly half of today’s figure. That’ll take a combo of replacing fossil fuels with renewable sources, operational improvements, and consumers’ sustainability efforts.

That brings up the other issue: some say that Gen Z has a confusing relationship with clothes, since we’re the generation most focused on sustainability but also buy the most fast fashion. IMO, it could come down to cost—you can’t buy quality with every purchase on an entry-level budget, and everyone wants to look good. But I’ll leave that up to you. 

ARE THERE LANDFILLS IN THE METAVERSE?

Shoppers (especially Gen Z ones) are spending more time, and more money, online—what will melding the digital and fashion worlds look like from a metaverse mindset?

NON-MCKINSEY PICKS 

#BookTok. Gen Z’s love of books and online discussions about favorite titles is helping brick-and-mortar stores too. Some book chains are even opening new branches—signs of hope in an industry once considered doomed. [Bloomberg]

Swipe wrong? More than half of Tinder’s users come from Gen Z—and because of the pandemic, the app is helping many people learn how to date. That’s part of why Gen Z is using the app totally differently from millennials. [Fortune]

Doing the math. Gen Z workers are the most likely to be willing to take a pay cut for nonfinancial goals such as more enjoyable work, better work–life balance, or more flexibility. [LinkedIn News]

Quick pic. BeReal has become one of the most popular apps by using a different formula than most social media: you post two unedited photos per day at a random time—and you can only view others’ photos if you’ve posted your own—aiming to boost authenticity in an increasingly cultivated online world. [Axios] 

visualize it

When people from the West buy from the East, it’s because often products are cheaper. The other way around, people often want to buy brands and products that aren’t available in their countries or have cheap delivery fees. 

HAVE SOME FUN; YOU’VE EARNED IT

— Edited by Sarah Skinner, Gen Z curation editor, New York