In Kawamura’s book, they say “that it is the designers, clothing manufacturers and businesspeople who impose new fashions in order to stimulate the market and increase their trade” (Kawamura Fashion-ology p. 5). This relates to consumerism, because we as consumers are constantly looking for the latest, most novel thing to buy, and it usually the influence of the designers, clothing manufacturers and business people who dictate what is novel and what the current styles of the present are. Kawamura also mentions how consumers are “denied any part…in creating fashion and has to accept what the producer offers and…that it is the producer that shapes fashion” (Kawamura Fashion-ology p. 15, 2005). The first video which I have linked on this page is an example of someone’s response to consumerism. In the video it discusses how business try to control us as consumers and force us to buy, buy, buy, and always want whatever they are producing.
As these businesses cause consumers to continue to purchase their products, which are usually made in bulk in the most cost efficient and profitable way, while charging the consumers more than 1000 times that as the price. However, many consumers are not aware of the injustices that do happen behind the scenes in order to make many of these producers so rich and successful. In the second video that I posted up, it discusses how Nike makes billions of dollars each year, it still participates in practices which are not great, such as only paying workers less than $2 a day.
This relates to the compact challenge because its purpose is to make us aware of our own consumerism. I am lucky because I was informed about consumerism and its effects very early, and have been an informed consumer ever since. For example, I do not purchase Coke products and do not eat at Jack in the Box and also shop regularly at thrift stores. I hope that we can all grow to learn to be well informed consumers.
Works cited:
Kawamura, Yuniya. Fashion-ology: An Introduction to Fashion Studies.
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-7s8HbHIew
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgl7vDZ-jF8
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