5 Ethical Alternatives for Your Favorite Shopping Apps
In a world in which we're constantly hearing about the conflict between fast fashion and sustainability, how can we all shop ethically?
It is a question that many of us are grappling with recently. Fast fashion is budget-friendly and convenient, but it can be damaging to the environment and small businesses. While it's not reasonable to assume that everyone can stop buying fast fashion due to accessibility, we can all make it a goal to find more sustainable and ethical shopping alternatives to use when able. Here are five shopping apps that will let you treat yourself while also treating others.
ThredUp
ThredUp makes thrifting easier than ever with their app. Thredup actively rejects fast fashion and fashion waste by encouraging the sustainable practice of reusing and reselling clothes. They cite on their website that making one new garment takes 77 gallons of water and creates 17lbs of carbon dioxide equivalent, so purchasing a thrifted item is better for the environment. You can sell and buy gently used clothes and actively help fight fast fashion culture.
Miiriya
Miiriya is like Amazon, but every product is from a Black-owned business. There are no transaction or listing fees, so vendors receive 100% of their earnings. You can buy everything on this app, including clothes, hand-made décor, hair and beauty products, art, fitness gear, electronics, services, kitchen items and even baked goods. It is a relatively new app, and it's still growing; the founder is covering all the fees at this time. This is an excellent app to replace some of your Amazon purchases and the more support they receive, the more businesses Miiriya will be able to support.
Etsy
Etsy is an excellent platform for supporting small businesses and independent artists. Etsy's goal is to "keep human connection at the heart of commerce." With over 4.7 million active sellers and 90.7 million active buyers, you have endless options to support rather than buying mass-produced items. Etsy has everything you can think of, from fashion and jewelry to craft supplies and home décor. They are also the first major online shopping destination that offsets their carbon emissions from shipping and packaging by funding verified emission reduction projects.
Depop
Depop is the trendiest peer-to-peer fashion marketplace on the market. Depop now has over 21 million designers, artists, collectors and vintage sellers. You can buy clothes, jewelry, beauty products, art, sports equipment and more. Like all types of thrifting, reusing clothes is a great way to protect the environment and support individual sellers. Depop hopes to sell clothes and foster a creative community that turns shopping into a collaborative human experience. Also, Depop aims to be climate-neutral by the end of 2021.
Good on You
Good on You created an app to combat the extensive damage inflicted on people and the climate caused by the global fashion industry. They may not be a typical shopping app, but you will find new ethical brands to support through their ranking system. Good on You ranks popular fashion brands based on how they treat people, animals and the planet. You can ditch brands with poor scores and find new brands with impressive scores based on thoroughly researched data. Good On You lives by their motto "Do good. Look good. Feel good."
Ready to use these ethical apps for some retail therapy? HERE is exactly what you need to buy to copy Dua Lipa's iconic style.