Even if you haven’t heard the term ‘ultra-fast fashion’ you’ve probably seen it everywhere—whether it’s TikTok hauls, $5 tops popping up in your feed, or a friend bragging about snagging an entire outfit for less than the cost of lunch. It feels fun, fast, and harmless but what exactly is ultra-fast fashion, and what are its implications? 

What Is Ultra-Fast Fashion? 

We’re all familiar with fast fashion, with brands like Zara or H&M turning runway looks into affordable styles in just a few weeks. Ultra-fast fashion takes that idea and hits the turbo button. Brands like Shein, Temu and Boohoo infamously use real-time consumer data to produce thousands of new clothing designs every day. Once reserved for seasonal spring/summer or winter/autumn collections, we see new releases daily. 

For example, Zara releases about 35,000 styles in a year while Shein releases between 2,000 and 10,000 a day! The business model is all about speed, volume, and trend chasing, designed to keep you scrolling, buying, and wearing items only a handful of times before the next micro-trend begins. 

Why Is It So Appealing? 

There’s no denying the allure. The prices are so low they barely make a dent in your wallet. Social media influencers make it look fun and harmless. And platforms like TikTok and Instagram blend entertainment with shopping so seamlessly. It’s addictive, convenient, and gives you that instant thrill of newness. 

When something costs that little, it raises the question of whether someone else is paying the real price. Whether that’s workers in unsafe working conditions, or the planet bearing the brunt of disposable clothing. 

Why Does It Matter? 

Ultra-fast fashion is reshaping how we see clothes, shopping, and even ourselves. Behind the endless variety and low prices there are serious threats to sustainability, labour rights, and the future of fashion. 

In our new podcast series Behind the Barcode, we spoke with Alice Payne, Dean of RMIT Fashion and Textile School who shared that ‘what we have in this particular time and place is a particular form of fashion system that has been about drawing on that love of human expression and adornment and actually almost twisting it into something quite extractive, exploitative and, really directed fully at the profits of a few.’ 

But it shouldn’t come at the expense of the people who make our clothes or the health of our planet. Ethical fashion means workers are treated with dignity, paid fairly, and protected from exploitation, and that clothing is produced in ways that don’t deplete or pollute the Earth’s resources.  

What’s Next? 

It can feel overwhelming that culture, in many ways, promotes the need for constant newness in shopping. But small choices add up to big impacts. And change is possible. There’s a future of fashion where we love our clothes more, save money, slow down, and make choices that are better for people and planet. 

And that’s exactly what we’re exploring in our new podcast, Behind the Barcode. Join hosts Hannah and Kat as they unpack the truth about ultra-fast fashion. How it works, why it matters, and what we can do about it. 

Because once you know the story behind the barcode, those bargain clothes in your cart might not look like such good value.