Around the world, the large majority of the human population is on lockdown. Forced indoors, confined to their homes or apartments, restricted to all but essential movement and thus, for many, unable to work, run their businesses or earn an income. 

We all know the reason. Our invisible enemy is Covid19 and its wreaking havoc on economies across the board – not least the fashion sector. 

Along with the announcement of enforced lockdowns last month came the mandatory closure of fashion ateliers and high street fast-fashion labels across the globe. As a result, there has been a dramatic drop in sales - even for those brands lucky enough to be able to continue selling online – as well as a worrying accumulation of stock at a time when the sustainability of the fashion industry was already in question. 

Pauline Fleur - Organic

And that’s all without mentioning the human side – the loss of thousands of jobs around the world, most troublingly the compulsory shutting down of the garment factories in developing countries, where the fabric for stock originates. 

Industry insiders and existing Fashion Revolution supporters can’t help but liken the current situation to the Rana Plaza garment factory tragedy of April 2013 in Bangladesh where 1,134 workers were killed and 2500 injured in the collapse of the eight-storey building. Just as the collapse of Rana Plaza brought to light the human-rights plight of underpaid clothing factory workers in developing countries, so too does the Covid19 pandemic. These same workers are now out of a job, not receiving the salaries they need to pay their rent and feed their families, and without the aid packages, the compensation and the unemployment benefits afforded to many of us in the western world. 

Elena Morales

It’s not all doom and gloom though. There are some glimmers of hope for the future. A number of brands have resumed online sales recently such as UK high street brand Next which closed online operations at the end of March due to the virus. But perhaps more encouraging than anything are the voices for change currently speaking out in support of this pandemic forcing us to rethink and reimagine the fashion industry altogether. 

For a while now there has been a call to change the Fashion Week system to a more sustainable and ethical approach, in line with current issues surrounding human rights and the environment. But this is about more than simply creating ‘sustainable’ collections from recycled materials; this is about tackling the real root of the issue – the economic model – including dramatically reducing the volumes of clothing produced and the resources used in the process, while also taking into account the safety of the supply chain and the human element. 

Pedro Palmas

And for change to come will take work from us all – it’s not just the conglomerates who need to change – we need to change our consumer behaviour. Slow the relentless cycle of fashion that lasts only one season, And once the pandemic is over, we have a unique opportunity to alter the way this industry works for the better, as opposed to returning to the ‘business as usual’ model that currently favours profit over people and the planet.