3D Clothing Technology: A Method of Solving Fast Fashion’s Waste Problem
Fast fashion has long been criticized by the public for creating a large amount of non-degradable fabric waste, which resulted in rapid increase in landfills. The reason of the waste is a disastrous effect of its business model: trendy designs, mass production - even overproduction, and low quality. Due to the negative environmental impact of fashion fashion, the brands are increasingly being boycotted by environmentally-conscious consumers. Therefore, fast fashion brands are desperate to solve the waste problem and improve brand images.
Cutting-edge technologies are solutions for brands to transform its old production model which is heavily reliant on manual work, among which, 3D clothing technology seems to be one of the perfect options. H&M Group, for instance, has adopted 3D clothing and other 3D-based technologies in order to take its business model to a new level.
1. Cut Down Pre-Consumer Textile Waste
According to the report of Pulse of the Fashion Industry 2017, 35% of the raw materials along the fashion supply chain end up as waste. A single style may require twenty or more samples before finally determined, and thus tonnes of fabric are wasted during the product development process. As most of those clothing samples are part-finished and cannot worn by consumers, fashion brands have to discard them.
In design stage, 3D clothing technology is the optimal tool to reduce pre-consumer textile waste. Different from the traditional product development process where 2D sketches and physical samples are indispensable parts, 3D fashion design is a computer-aided process where pattern making and prototyping procedures are conducted digitally, and thus fabric wastes are eliminated. Digital clothes created with 3D fashion design software like Clo3D or 3D digital clothing service platform like Seemsay, can be reviewed, edited and modified digitally, so as to enable designers and pattern makers to check each amended version directly in 3D form instead of making physical samples. Therefore, there would be no clothing sample waste or sampling yardage waste.
Additionally, databases of digital fabrics on such 3D fashion design software and platforms are excellent tools to facilitate material sourcing and eliminate textile swatch wastes. One such fabric database is the built-in fabric library on Seemsay 3D digital clothing platform, which enables designers to check the texture and drape digitally. Furthermore, Seemsay platform also provided the contact information of fabric suppliers. So, fabric sourcing can be conducted online without the need of physical textile swatch books.
2. Tackle Overproduction Problem
According to the analysis of Son of A Tailor published in 2019, an average of 18.5% of produced garments are never being sold. Attributable to the expensive warehouse fee, it has been a norm for apparel companies to throw away or burn the unsold clothes. To tackle the challenge of overproduction, France’s prime minister announced in 2019 that France was working on legislation to ban destruction of unsold garments. Accordingly, fashion brands will have to change their operation model and address the oversupply problem.
3D digital clothing service platforms like Seemsay, offer 3D garment rendering services, with which 2D design drawings can be easily transformed to digital clothing models. Through showing the photo-realistic 3D image of garments to potential customers, fashion brands would have a clear impression of the buyers’ interests before the physical prototypes are created. Therefore, decision makers can drop undesirable products in time and determine a production volume much closer to the number they can sell.
3. To Reduce Return Rate
It may be an astonishing fact to a lot people that returned online purchases are usually sent straight to dumpsters. According to the environmental journalist of Corporate Knights magazine Adria Vasil, returned garments should be rechecked, repressed and re-packed before they can be resold to other customers. In consideration of the expenses, many companies consider it’s not worth it, and the most “economic” solution is just discarding them. As suggested by the 2021 Click, Ship & Return Report, size and fit are the top reason customers return online orders. Solving the size problem can eventually reduce a great amount of waste.
In this regard, 3D fashion design offers an excellent solution. The hyper-real digital clothing image created by 3D clothing technology, paired with body scanning technology, can create a brand new business model: virtual fitting room, where consumers can try items on virtually. Through checking the drape, fit and style of the virtual clothes on full-body 3D human avatar, customers are able to choose the suitable size and reduce returns, and then cut down garments sent to landfills.
The key to rebuilding a responsible image of fast fashion brands is to find a feasible way to transform its wasteful operation model rather than greenwash. Fast fashion has been conducting their business in the same way so long that it’s time to change its low-tech operation model. 3D clothing technology gifted fast fashion a chance to change its pollutant production method and go to a new future. The past of fast fashion is written, but its sustainable future is left for them to write.