Prescriptions for future of fast fashion

I’m a sustainable fashion designer, but I admit that I’m excited for this year’s news about the revival of my favorite ‘90s brands Topshop and Forever 21. Though these have been tagged “fast fashion,” I’m still keeping and wearing some pieces I shopped from these brands from decades ago.

Four years after closing its iconic Oxford Street flagship store, British label Topshop and its menswear line Topman held their first runway show in seven years last August — headlined by supermodel Cara Delevingne, a good transition from Topshop’s “OG” (original) face Kate Moss as Cara could help bring the brand to a new generation of British high-fashion lovers.

Forever 21, however, is set for a rebound next year with new strategies after filing for bankruptcy this year, its second filing, as it has been bleeding for years due to tough online competitors from China, aggravated by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

For fast fashion brands like Topshop and Forever 21 to be here for long, and be followed eventually by other labels that I also like but have shut down their physical stores here in the Philippines and other countries: Debenhams, Dr. Martens, Desigual and Sfera, to name a few; here are some data-backed fast fashion resolutions: from American Eagle to Zara.

Beat online shops by niching 

Fast-fashion retailers such as Shein and Temu took market share from competing labels last year, according to analytics and data company GlobalData. 

To minimize losses, some brands reportedly are raising prices or restructuring their supply chains, but they definitely could benefit from limited-time and unexpected collaborations, like what H&M is doing with its annual collaboration with high-fashion brands and designers from Karl Lagerfeld to Kenzo.

Uniqlo is leveraging on this high-meets-low fashion technique with its East-meets-West collaborations, such as partnering with its parent country Japan’s own big-ticket names like Marimekko and Murakami representing the “east,” and new Dior creative director Jonathan Anderson and the likes for the “west.” 

Collaboration collections are seen as hitting two brands with one stone, so they are considered as investment pieces, increasing the likelihood for them to be bought while reducing impact to the environment because these are typically limited-edition.

While Shein, Forever 21 and Topshop all offer the same business proposition of affordable wide variety of styles for different age groups, Shein beats Forever 21 and Topshop in three areas: sizing, pricing and accessibility to more countries. But for Forever 21 and Topshop to get even with Shein, it has to be better not in terms of designs because these brands already have that, but in shipment. Since as of the moment, shipment speed has been the Achilles heel of Shein and Temu — the prices are so jaw-dropping, the fits are more or less okay, the style is true as advertised, but you have to wait around 10 days for your order to arrive. If Forever 21 and Topshop could beat that — and say, deliver orders in three days or less for the same low prices and variety of styles and sizes as Shein and Temu — then the Western labels could definitely reclaim their old glory from the Chinese ones. And also, they have to match the discount coupons and freebies! All these while not resorting to unsustainable production like sweatshops and massive waste.

Don’t come up with the same black, shades of blue and stripes

I no longer buy blues and blacks because I already have many of these — in different shades and stripes — in my closet. But season after season, I still see a lot of these in the market. They’re so many that the likelihood of bumping into someone on any day wearing the same color or stripes is so big that it is no longer rare or “mathematically improbable,” according to AI. 

A 2015 YouGov survey across 10 countries showed blue as most people’s favorite color. But if all fast fashion brands are to saturate the market with the same shades, especially the color of the year, then there is also a high likelihood that these clothes are going to end up in landfills.

What my friends and I like about Shein and Temu is that their offerings, though very affordable, are typically not in the same color palettes as those you could see in other brands’ physical stores — to the point that some of my friends and I browse these online stores just for “experience,” for fun, or as the modern way of counting sheep to make us fall asleep.

Churn out thoughtful, not just trendy, designs

Many fast-fashion brands die because they’re not for fast-paced lifestyles. They are only for the fast-paced because you can easily buy them. But if you always use them because you’re on the go, they wear out easily. Or they’re made without proper pockets, zippers, buttons and other features that are supposed to make life easier. That is why consumers buy at sports brands instead even if they are not into active lifestyles because sporty ones have the thoughtful designs and features that make them practical for frequent use and everyday life.

Maureen Stamati, Guess Philippines executive director, told me in an exclusive interview that the brand is not “fast fashion” but “elevated workwear” with a new “athleisure” category for easily transitioning from work to workout — or for those simply looking for athletic look and functionality to survive the daily grind.

Thoughtful designs, such as being lightweight, temperature regulation, proper pockets and craftsmanship, make Uniqlo tick above all other fast fashion brands. 

Adjust sizes and labeling

Topshop and Forever 21 could also streamline their sizing — the way Shein does. For example, instead of segregating styles for petites and plus-size at stores, these should go together with “regular” sizes — the way Shein labels its sizes, say, from zero to 14 — you understand that if you’re petite, for instance, you’d order zero or 14 if plus-sized. 

These “petite” and “plus-size” labeling could be flattering for some but a turn-off for others. I, for example, feel like I got heavier if I get something from the “plus size” section, and vertically-challenged if I go to the petite one — even if they are true. You shop to make yourself feel good, but if you see labels like those, your day could be ruined. You don’t feel “special” for having a section dedicated to your different body type; you feel isolated. As if you couldn’t “seat” with the ones not on the plus or petite side. At first it was commendable to have “body-positive” labels, but now, brands should avoid labels like those to not make your customer feel uncomfortable or stereotyped.

Speaking of sizing, I noticed that most of those in Forever 21 and Topshop’s sale racks are those in “American sizes” — the designs might be nice and the features useful, but the length are mostly for taller people and the width for 20-inch waistlines — come on! I barely could buy any good pants without having them altered! Please study your market’s average height and weight regularly — especially the Asian ones!

Key market trends and researches show Asia is a massive, fast-growing and crucial market for fashion, driven by rising incomes, youth populations and digital adoption, offering huge opportunities but also demanding localized strategies, especially around e-commerce, sustainability and tech-driven experiences.

Sustainability commitment

Apart from revamping its flagship SM MOA store and getting a Gen-Z brand ambassador, Andrea Brillantes, as first Filipino endorser, international brand Guess is hoping to hook a younger generation of customers and start pulling away from being their moms’ and aunties’ brand by speaking the language of the Gen-Zs: sustainability.

“No, it’s not fast fashion,” Stamati stressed Guess’ category. “Actually, the one thing that we pride ourselves on is the quality of our jeans. Not only for quality. Guess is big on sustainability. So the majority of our jeans are made from eco material, and not just T-shirts, but the shirts as well.”

In addition to having eco-friendly collections, brands like Uniqlo and H&M have recycling programs. According to Swedish lifestyle brand Ikea, recycling could be costly in terms of technology and equipment in the onset, but it could make the company save in resources in the long-run to keep prices down.

“Environmental sustainability concerns play a considerable role in the career and consumption choices of Gen Zs and Millennials, with seven out of 10 reporting that companies’ environmental credentials are important to choosing employers, and nearly two-thirds saying they are willing to pay more for sustainable products, according to a new survey by global professional services firm Deloitte,” Mark Segal wrote in a May 2025 article for financial news site ESG Today. 

Virality could backlash

Using artificial intelligence (AI) in fashion ad campaigns could make downhill brands like Forever 21 save a lot in promotions, but AI is still seen as taking away jobs from actors, models and behind-the-scenes crew like photographers, makeup artists and stylists. 

But like AI use, the use of double-meaning ads like American Eagle’s Sydney Sweeney campaign is a distasteful and desperate move, which now results in the brand selling its products to up to 70 percent off to regain customer trust, more so since the controversy exploded last summer.

It can be recalled that the campaign word-played “good genes” with “good jeans,” which has been labeled as “racist” and “eugenics rage bait” since “good genes” seem to describe someone fair and blonde like Sydney.

Perhaps, American Eagle can learn from the example of Filipino apparel brand Bench, after all, both brands are carried in the Philippines by Suyen Corp.

Suyen Corp. and Bench founder Ben Chan, in an exclusive interview following the recent “Ternocon: Palaro” in SM Mall of Asia, shared to me what other fast fashion brands may learn from Bench.

Bench, for one, has clearly learned from its past controversial ads such as a Bench Underwear billboard along Guadalupe in Edsa that literally stopped traffic because model Dingdong Dantes was shown lying down in sexy swimwear. Bench ads were so controversial they were content-analyzed in graduate theses as cases for “sex sells.”

Instead of a “rage bait” or AI ad, Bench, together with SM, recently held the live fashion show “Ternocon: Palaro” featuring young Filipino designers because “We want to cater to the younger generation, the Gen-Z ones, that’s why we’re doing it here. It’s the first time that we’re doing an event here at the football field of SM MOA (Mall of Asia),” he told DAILY TRIBUNE.

“I’m not really a sports fan. But I do Pilates. That’s it,” he said when asked if he is a sports fan because “Ternocon: Palaro” was sports-themed.

When asked for Bench’s performance in the midst of many online and offline competitors, Chan said: “We’re doing well especially now, we’re gaining momentum for the online, you know, like Lazada, TikTok, all that. It’s a good thing when we do that because that helps a lot.”

When pressed on what other fast fashion brands could learn from Bench, Chan replied: “You have to very innovative. You go with the times. You have to look forward.”