Sustainability is in; Fast Fashion is out
Written by Samantha Wright
Featuring Abby Miars
Ever since its rebranding in 2015, SHEIN has become the world’s largest fashion retailer, putting it ahead of major brands like Zara and H&M. Although the retailer may be unknown to anyone over 30, ask any Gen Z shopper about their opinion on SHEIN and you will be confronted with a deep divide of some who love it and some who hate it. Regardless of the temptation to buy $5 going out tops that will stain all your other clothes, the low price point is not worth the hype.
Over the last few years, the idea of nostalgia and bringing back old trends has swept the world of fashion and retail by storm. As Fashionista claimed, “Fashion has always been trapped in a love affair with the past.” (Wheeler). Back in 2015, you wouldn’t dare to witness a college girl wearing low rise jeans with a crop top for gameday. Rather, you would witness high waisted shorts and oversized baseball tees as traditional gameday attire. However, in recent years, rocking College apparel has become a craze that nobody would have expected. Particularly, big stars like Beyoncé have taken the initiative to take advantage of the recent craze with her own partnership with Balmain, inspired by Historically Black Colleges and Universities (Wang).
Nostalgia craze and a need for original pieces have allowed Vintage to become popular again. If you go on TikTok, you will see endless vlogs of “thrift hauls” by major influencers like Emma Chamberlain, who also have their own impact on the fashion industry. Re-selling apps like Poshmark and Depop have also recently become endorsed by major influencers and have allowed a majority of Gen Z to become young entrepreneurs, in the reselling business sense.
As for those who are actually attending college, there is no better satisfaction than entering your school’s bookstore, or for Michigan students, the M Den. Surrounded by Maize and Blue, students are swept into justifying major shopping sprees in preparation for game days to prove that it is great to be a Michigan wolverine. Although the M Den offers a variety of apparel, a lot of people, especially women, all flock to the staple Hype and Vice crop tops with simplistic yet effective designs. Regardless of the designs being satisfactory, many students (including myself) feel the desire to buy more unique pieces that no other person on campus might possess.
Upon becoming a wolverine, I began to discover the entire world that is behind Vintage Michigan gear. With an extensive number of alumni, vintage Michigan gear is some of the best of the best. However, websites like Ebay provide incredible pieces, for ridiculous prices that aren’t feasible for all college students but are usually provided by longtime collectors. Regardless of having stores like the Salvation Army and Goodwill, many students do not have the time to spend hours searching for unique pieces.
A student herself, Abigail Miars, now a senior majoring Economics with a minor in Entrepreneurship, has become a staple for providing beautiful and vintage Michigan merchandise at affordable prices. Her business, Umich Apparel, has over 4,000 followers on Instagram ever since its start back in 2019. I myself became a fan of the business once I got into Michigan, as it has been my first stop when searching for staple gameday pieces that will last me years to come. Upon interviewing Miars, she reflected on her experience with sustainability and why it is so important to encourage shopping second hand, and how we can make a difference by doing the things we love, shopping!
Although anyone can go to a thrift store and pick out things that might seem valuable to buy, a lot of the time, you end up buying things that you will never use. Especially when it comes to college merchandise, something with a maize M might seem like a good buy, but in reality, you just bought it because it was a piece of Michigan merch. I personally believe that it takes a specific eye for fashion to select pieces that are unique and curate a collection that will work, and Abby Miars has more than that. Miars began her freshman year at U of M, where her friends asked her if she could pick out some Michigan pieces for them whenever she went thrift shopping. After making an Instagram to help kickstart her business, she quickly began to sell several of the pieces she posted within a few days and never looked back.
Sustainability within everyday life choices is something that can help determine the safety of our future. Although shopping at websites like SHEIN and Fashion Nova may seem tempting due to low prices and trendy styles, the price of buying a shirt or a dress is one that we will continue to pay off for the rest of our lives. To Miars, “willing to find quality clothes that will last longer than just the shein tank you want right now (hate to say it but makes a huge impact).” Especially for college students, finding new cute and trendy pieces of clothing may seem vital, but finding those timeless and staple items here and there will make all the difference later on.
Like myself, Miars expressed how “Tons of students, myself included, wear an outfit on game day one time and already want something new for the next one.” Although some pieces you may have right now can work for the next four years, the majority of students will not want to continue the same outfit every four years. So go take a road trip to the Salvation Army or stop by The Getup Vintage to find some cool and unique pieces that won't harm the environment. Find pieces and you will love and wear them for years to come. As Miars mentioned, if students didn’t buy a single first-hand item, there would be enough to go around for a long time.
What you can do to help
Reusing: Borrow some of your friends' Michigan clothes for game days. Find ways to spend less on individual items and try to find ways to share clothing with friends to help expand your options while contributing to a more sustainable effort.
Recycling: Sell your items on Depop, Poshmark, and Ebay. Also, it only takes a single DM to sell your items to Abby at Umich Apparel! Believe it or not, if you don’ t wear something in your closet for 6 months, that's a sign to toss it out and exchange it for something new and fresh. Bring your old clothes to stores like the Salvation Army to donate or places like Plato’s Closet that will compensate you for your items. Locally, places like Goodwill and the Ann Arbor PTO Thrift shop accept donations, as well as the House by the side of the Road, where clothing items are offered at no charge to adults or children who have suffered recent hardships.
Works Cited
House by the Side of the Road, www.housebythesideoftheroad.org/. Accessed 10 Nov. 2022
Wang, Emily. “Beyoncé Created a Balmain Collection for the Best Reason.” Teen Vogue, Teen Vogue, 10 July 2018,
www.teenvogue.com/story/beyonce-balmain-capsule-collection-benefitting-united-negro college-fund. Accessed 10 Nov. 2022.
Wheeler, André. “Why Retailers Are Banking on Millennial Nostalgia for Fall.” Fashionista, Fashionista, 21 Sept. 2016, fashionista.com/2016/09/nostalgia-fall-2016-fashion-trend. Accessed 10 Nov. 2022
Wright, Samantha, and Abigail Miars. “Umich Apparel and Abby Miars.” 4 Nov. 2022. Accessed 10 Nov. 2022