“It is about quality, not quantity – not landfill” © Vivienne Westwood

Today, during my session in Luxury Marketing I have got an insight.

Together with founders of the new platform called Nynjalist, we were discussing the way how to promote luxury sneakers in social media and one interesting issue was raised during our conversation.

It was about people who buy one item of excellent quality instead promiscuous seasonable consumption.

Let’s think about it in utilization perspective.

Contemporary fashion allows us to mix sophisticated items with the mass-market clothes. And yes, it is so easy to buy apparels in Zara or H&M to complement expensive accessories. They produce actual collections of basic clothes for an affordable price. It is so seductive to be always on the track with new trends and keep your pocket happy.

But there is one indisputable fact: while we spend few dollars less (or more) on those cool jeans, we actually pay high environmental costs for our clothes. Moreover, the way we get dress nowadays has nothing in common with the previous generation, when clothes could be worn during many years. According to the Wrap and Resources Action Programme, we purchased 1.13 million tonnes of new apparel last year in the UK. And we use it 2-3 year on average (sometimes much less). Can you imagine this quantity of fabric’s waste?

And don’t forget about the stock which wasn’t sold!

For example, in 2016, there were around 16 000 tons of discarded clothing H&M collected. And it is just one mass-market brand!

So, now let’s come back to the luxury consumption.

What is the luxury? It is the quality, uniqueness, timelessness. Pieces, which have a real value (emotional, hedonistic and economical) and can serve much longer than mass market’s low-quality items and we can pass it through generations or re-sell it if necessary.

The price barrier also plays an important part in the sustainability. Luxury consumers are more serious about their purchases and less succumb to the attack of shopaholism (because uncontrolled luxury spending sometimes can be relevant to the new apartment in Mayfair).

Unlikely, we can find sophisticated goods at the dump.

On the base of these facts, there is one conclusion: perceived consumption of luxury brands, who care about sustainability is not just a pleasure and people, who understand why and what they buy – in some case help to save our planet. An excellent reason to buy a new pair of Zanotti sneakers, isn’t it?