fast fashion

noun

: an approach to the design, creation, and marketing of clothing fashions that emphasizes making fashion trends quickly and cheaply available to consumers

For many shoppers, Primark has an irresistible offer: trendy clothes at astonishingly low prices. The result is a new and even faster kind of fast fashion, which encourages consumers to buy heaps of items, discard them after a few wears and then come back for another batch of new outfits.

—The Economist

Competition is fierce at every end of the fashion spectrum from luxury to fast fashion.

—Nedra Rhone

In 1985, we bought roughly 31 clothing items per year; now [in 2012] we snap up twice that many thanks to "fast fashion."

—Azeen Ghorayshi

—usually hyphenated when used before another noun

fast-fashion chains/retailers

Examples of fast fashion in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Global Fashion Summit-Shanghai Gala attracted a variety of brands ranging from fast fashion to entry-level and high-end luxury, as well as decision-makers from marketing, retail, and the supply chain. —Li Jun, WWD, 15 Dec. 2024

Unfortunately, many small businesses are not immune to fast fashion's reaches. —Presley Bo Tyler, USA TODAY, 13 Dec. 2024

Holiday shopping has undergone several shifts over the years as many have turned away from traditional brick and mortar stores towards fast fashion and exclusively online shops. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 1 Dec. 2024

With consumer sentiments beginning to stray from fast fashion and turn towards slow fashion and more eco-friendly purchases, there’s a rapidly growing market for secondhand clothing and home goods. —Jaime Catmull, Forbes, 27 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1975, in the meaning defined above