Dr. Elaine Ritch: Fast Fashion, Fast Money Drain | Wealth Pathways #21

In this episode of Wealth Pathways, expert Dr. Elaine Ritch takes host Sarah Stancombe through how the fast fashion industry is impacting our decision making when it comes to shopping for clothes. 

Dr. Elaine Ritch is a Reader in Fashion, Marketing and Sustainability at Glasgow Caledonian University. She has made significant contributions to the sustainable fashion literature over the last decade and has adopted novel methodologies to explore consumer perceptions, including with young children as they reflect on Eco-School activities. Dr. Elaine Ritch is also a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. She leads the research group ‘Consumer Lifestyles and Experiences’ and teaches ‘New Perspectives in Critical Marketing and Consumer Society.’ Dr. Elaine Ritch has co-edited four academic textbooks related to fashion, marketing and sustainability, published her research in international journals and presented her work at international conferences. Her approach to research and teaching is very much driven by the ‘Common Weal’ (Scots for Common Good), and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

In this episode, Dr. Elaine Ritch highlights how fast fashion is stopping us from buying with autonomy. From online quick sales to phrases like ‘only 2 left’ and ‘already in 3 people’s baskets’, shopping online may lead to impulsive decisions driven by panic. Dr. Elaine Ritch gives advice on how to stay calm and think about purchases more intentionally.

Together, Sarah and Dr. Elaine Ritch discuss research that showed how during COVID-19 lockdowns, people were able to spend more time considering the clothes they already had in their wardrobe and make more intentional purchases based on their own personal style. This often leads to the choice of a more quality item, enabling people to wear it for longer and feel more satisfied.

Follow Dr. Elaine Ritch’s work via the following links: https://www.gcu.ac.uk/staff/elaineritch   https://www.gcu.ac.uk/aboutgcu/academicschools/gsbs/research/consumer-lifestyles-and-experience 

Connect with Dr. Elaine Ritch via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-elaine-ritch-86a44a29/

Read Dr. Elaine Ritch’s article about the true costs of fast fashion: https://www.economicsobservatory.com/fast-fashion-what-are-the-true-costs   

Produced by the Affluence Science Labs, a division of LMSL, the Life Management Science Labs. 

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