Sitting down with a cup of tea, watching a haul video and appreciating the vast range of gorgeous clothing that someone has purchased has in recent years become a popular form of entertainment. However, admiring another persons clothing items can only result in one thing; an urge to shop and support the fast fashion industry.
What is a haul video?
The definition of a 'haul' is simply a lengthy video in which a person shows off their recent purchases to their followers or YouTube subscribers. Most haul videos predominantly feature clothing but can also include other items such as makeup, skincare, homeware and food.
YouTube has become one of the most popular platforms for entertainment and many of the large and successful channels are focused on fashion, beauty and lifestyle. These internet stars post frequent hauls of items from inexpensive high-street stores which are at a more realistic price point for their younger audiences.
With over 11 million YouTube subscribers and 9.6 million Instagram followers, Zoe Sugg, also known as Zoella, is one of the biggest names in the social media industry. Her content, like many other social media stars, is focused on beauty and fashion and is targeted at a younger audience. Hauls of clothing are predominant on her channel and are popular among her audience, receiving a large amount of views. Her 'huge summer Primark haul' reached 2.2 million views which is great advertisement for the high-street brand but problematic for the planet.
Large high-street brands such as Primark, H&M and Zara are among the stores that contribute to fast fashion through extremely quick production processes that pollute our planet. Fashion production makes up 10% of humanity's carbon emissions and encouraging frequent shopping sprees is not helping the problem. Textile dying is the second largest polluter of clean water and toxic chemicals used to grow non-organic cotton are, not surprisingly, extremely dangerous for us and the environment.
While these production processes are extremely harmful, the effects on the planet don't stop there. When we no longer want our clothes and throw them away they unfortunately don't just disappear. 60% of all clothes produced in the UK are not worn and end up sitting in landfill, taking years to decompose. All of these issues are discussed in a very inspiring and informative video by Lex Croucher titled "Stop making haul videos!" Her videos are often on topics such as fashion, politics and veganism.
More and more online and high-street brands are now using influencer marketing to their advantage, sending bloggers a variety of cheap clothes to show to their large audiences, which is fuelling the need to go out and shop for new items. Online shopping sites have added to the increasing amount of hauls being filmed as there are thousands of items available at extremely low prices, ready to be delivered to your door the next day.
Are haul videos changing for the better?
On a more positive note, haul videos are changing and social media stars are beginning to use their platforms to inform and educate their audiences on the harmful impacts of fast fashion and the eco-friendly alternatives available. Many YouTube stars have begun to talk more about sustainable fashion brands which make the environment their main priority. If you search 'sustainable fashion' on YouTube you will be provided with a vast range of positive sustainable clothing hauls, inspiring everyone to make a change and find alternative ways of shopping. YouTuber Lisa Chen produces a large amount of content that focuses on sustainability, uploading frequent eco-friendly clothing hauls. One of these hauls featured clothing from sustainable brand Reformation.
Another YouTube channel which focuses on ethical and sustainable fashion as well as beauty is 'Beauty With Meaning.' Karina focuses on promoting how fashion and beauty can still be glamorous but at the same time non-toxic and not damaging to the environment. Her aim through her videos is to inspire others to be eco-conscious in their everyday lives.
so What can you do?
When it comes to the environment even the smallest of actions can have a huge impact. Making an effort to shop at more environmentally friendly stores and resisting the urge to shop till you drop can help make a difference and encourage others to be eco-conscious when shopping for clothes.
Despite what you think, you don't need to buy everything and so being selective when choosing items and only picking pieces you know you'll wear for many years is the key to helping the environment. It's time we demand more from the fashion industry, for safer working conditions for garment producers, for slower production processes and for the use of more environmentally friendly materials. If we initiate change, we can make a difference to consumerism and protect our planet.
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