Put The Ugly Christmas Sweater Down
Tariffs, secondhand holiday outfit inspo, and festive throwaway culture
The last week has been rough. I know that everyone processes things in their own way and mine is to keep very busy. Something that gave me a bit of life was this Vogue Business article that interviewed sustainability leaders about how they’re finding the energy to keep going as we head into the next year. I was excited to see
of + and Ayesha Barenblat of Remake featured. It’s worth the read if you need a boost to take action.The DL on Tariffs
If you’re seeing headlines about tariffs on imports and want to learn about what this could mean for consumer purchasing power,
and break it down here and here. A key takeaway within the fashion industry is that 97% of clothing sold in the US is made in another country. If tariffs on imports are enacted, brands will run scenarios on how much their margins can stretch to cover them, but will almost certainly pass the cost onto consumers as price increases.A tiny silver lining is that tariffs could grow the secondhand sector more rapidly if items are sourced domestically, creating an element of affordability that firsthand wouldn’t be able to compete with. ThredUp’s 2024 Resale Report shows that the US secondhand market is projected to reach $73B by 2028 and this number could jump significantly if consumers turn to resale when the cost of buying new becomes inaccessible. However there’s another less optimistic scenario: ultra-fast fashion could become even more dominant since the industry’s opening price point will start with the Sheins and Temus of the world.
This is already a challenging time for fashion brands and there’s real concern about tariffs creating layoffs and inflation. If you have buying, planning, or production friends, they’re probably trying to juggle pulling up spring deliveries and sourcing new factories alongside the pressure of managing peak holiday. Fashion friends, my thoughts are with you and sending you strength to get through the next few months.
You Don’t Need That New Holiday [insert item here]
The ex-buyer in me always thinks about holiday apparel as soon as we get into August. If you cracked open my head, you would find the phrase “sparkle and shine” permanently imprinted on my brain. This time of year also makes me think about the rise of the ugly Christmas sweater, which may be the most emblematic of disposable holiday dressing: bought in haste, worn once, and tossed or donated during spring cleaning. You might remember a spate of articles in 2019 during the height of ugly Christmas sweater-ing that explored how this trend tapped into throwaway culture. Fast fashion versions were destined for landfills because the quality was so poor that the sweaters couldn’t be resold. Ugly Christmas sweaters also accelerated the microplastics problem since so many were/are made from acrylic, a material that sheds microplastics 1.5 times more when washed than 100% polyester.
But! There are ways to still be festive and reduce your footprint:
Shop secondhand first: A “Christmas sweater” search on ThredUp pulled up some fantastically ugly options in excellent condition and a search on “sequin holiday dress” returned over 45K items. Christmas sweaters are trending on Depop with +1K searches in the last week. There’s so much out there at a sharp price point that needs a good home!
Swap or get creative: Vanessa Friedman brilliantly suggested hosting an ugly Christmas sweater swap, accessorizing a plain sweatshirt with holiday-themed pins, or wearing a holiday-adjacent sweater in a metallic or bright color. There’s also the option to knit your own for the highly creative. Please let us know if you’ve done this, I’m already so impressed by your talent.
Rent: OG rental brand Rent The Runway just launched their Holiday category within their Occasions global navigation. It’s a highly curated take on festive dressing with multiple sub categories, like Cocktail Parties, Galas, Night Out, and New Year’s Eve. My RTR advice: don’t wait to place your rental order since the best options go quickly the further we get into the holiday season. There are also emerging peer-to-peer rental marketplaces like Pickle and Tulerie that could have the festive dress of your holiday 2024 dreams. You can also borrow handbags and jewelry on Switch (I haven’t rented from Switch since pre-pandemic, but had only positive experiences when I was a member).
Buy for longevity: I totally get that buying new might be the best option for you. Secondhand sites don’t consistently have the size or style that you want when you need it - it’s a long game. I’ll always acknowledge that it takes more time and effort to shop preloved, although I find a certain zen in zoning out and scrolling secondhand marketplaces looking for that one jacket that got away five years ago. Look to responsible brands (Reformation has amazing occasion dresses) or support an indie business (check out Garmentory). Buying for longevity and keeping your firsthand apparel in your closet rotation for years is what helps make your closet more sustainable.
A Quick Note On AI & Fashion Waste
Holiday inventory is tough to get right as a buyer since in an ideal world you buy juuust enough units to sell out right before Christmas Eve, maxing out your margins and revenue and leaving nothing behind to clog up your clearance section on Boxing Day. Traditionally, it’s a near-impossible feat since most fashion brands buy about six months in advance to secure fabric and factory space, plus inventory forecasting still has a ways to go. Add in the hyper-speed of the current trend cycle that can turn trends on their head in a small span of time, and before you know it you’ve bought too much or too little.
I live in a place where AI is a hot (and sometimes what feels like the only) topic of conversation. There’s strong potential that in the next five years AI will make on-demand manufacturing mainstream, eliminating the waste from overproduction. AI will be another key driver in fashion demand planning since it will be exceedingly more accurate than relying on a combination of historical sales, trends, seasonality, and supply chain timing to get buy quantities right. If you’re curious about why there are 30 of the same sequin dress on the clearance rack in your local store in January, this Vogue Business article touches on the many factors that contribute to this issue.
Sparkle & Shine for Holiday? Groundbreaking
I couldn’t hit send without sharing my circular party outfit inspo. I’m not a super dressy person, but I have a holiday party next month that might finally convince me to splurge on a rental or secondhand festive outfit.
My starting point was the Saloni Camille bow dress that I’ve been in love with ever since I saw
wear it here (also, shoutout to the PanDolly podcast which remains one of my favorite podcasts to this day). It led me down the rabbit hole to this deep red Rebecca Vallance dress that plays into a minimalist aesthetic with subtle festive sparkle. And because I naturally gravitate towards the most expensive/hard to find thing, this dress is exclusive to Net-a-Porter. I’ve found similar dresses to rent or buy preloved below. Some are by the same brand in different silho and some capture the spirit of this dress as opposed to the exact design.
If there’s one thing that I can take away from this, it’s that I need to get a jumpstart on holiday rentals since the cost per wear of buying may be a bit too high for a jeans-wearer like me. I also need a simple gold chain belt in my life and won’t rest until I find this Rixo version.
That’s it for this week, thanks for reading. If I’ve missed your favorite resale or rental site, please share in the comments below. I’d love to learn where everyone is shopping and renting. See you next Wednesday!
I'm always tempted to buy things based on the festive parties I'm being invited to/throwing - Ugly Holiday Sweater Party is definitely a tough one! I do have blank sweaters, though, and will now commit to crafting or upcycling should that kind of invitation come my way... Thanks for bringing attention to some of the waste generated by the holiday season!!
Ohhhh I have definitely been a victim of buying low quality ugly Christmas Sweater. Coming from a country where this is not a thing, I got caught up in the festivities in my first year in the US. Love the alternatives that you have given, I have been considering upcycling an old sweater with some old tree ornaments 😂. Will let you know how that goes!