What is circular fashion?

Last week, Passion Lilie announced a big move – we’re one step closer to circular fashion with our new Pre-Loved Collection. With this announcement came lots of great questions from our community, and we’re so excited to answer them! We’re pumped to see that our community is just as thrilled about this program as we are.

The most frequently asked question we received this week was: “what is circular fashion?” And we get it! It’s not something we hear often, but we hope it becomes more common as the fashion industry evolves.

What is circular fashion?

Circular fashion is a sustainable fashion strategy that’s designed to keep clothing out of landfills. The traditional fashion model is a straight line: make  wear  toss. Circular fashion creates a closed loop where garments are reused, repaired, resold, or eventually biodegraded.

Why does this matter?

Our planet has a major fashion problem – literal tons of clothing being dumped into landfills every moment of the day, contributing to carbon emissions and microplastic pollution. As the second largest consumer of water worldwide, the fashion industry is extremely wasteful.

The fast fashion industry is responsible for much of this damage. It relies on cheaply made synthetic fabrics like polyester, nylon, and acrylic which don’t biodegrade and often fall apart after just a few wears. This cycle encourages overconsumption and creates mountains of waste.  

Circular Fashion vs. Fast Fashion

Fast fashion is all about speed and volume. Giant industries pump out trendy clothes at warp speed and rock-bottom prices. But there’s a huge human and environmental cost to be paid, and it’s often the poorest, most marginalized communities who suffer. Workers (mostly women, mostly in the global south) are often underpaid, materials are unsustainable, and garments are treated as disposable.

Circular fashion is the opposite. It focuses on creating clothes that last and keeping them in use for as long as possible.

Brands that pursue a circular fashion economy:

• Use quality materials, classic designs, and responsible labor practices to make clothes built to last
• Make garments that can be repaired, repurposed, or resold after a few years instead of thrown into the trash
• Offer resale, repair, or recycling programs to extend the life of their garments
• Work together with consumers to reduce textile waste and conserve natural resources

With our Pre-Loved Collection, we can officially check each of those boxes. We’re proud and excited to make shopping sustainability just a little bit easier.

Why we love circular fashion

At Passion Lilie, sustainability is our raison d'être. We use 100% organic cotton, natural dyes, and handmade craftsmanship to reduce harm and preserve cultural heritage. We’re always asking ourselves and others: how can we do more?

This move toward circular fashion is a big step for us. Here are the top three reasons we love circular fashion:

1. It gives our clothes more life. We put a lot of love into making our clothes. A circular model gives these pieces the opportunity to be worn, enjoyed, and loved by more than one person.
2. It makes sustainable fashion more accessible. Sustainable fashion is more affordable and inclusive in the circular model. We’re able to offer gently worn pieces at lower prices, bringing more friends into our sustainable fashion community.
3. It keeps clothing out of landfills. When clothes are re-worn instead of discarded, we reduce the need for new production and lower the overall environmental impact of the fashion industry.

What does Plastic Free July have to do with circular fashion?

We launched our Pre-Loved Collection during Plastic Free July because the goals of both initiatives are intertwined – both aim to reduce waste and make mindful, long-term choices.

Plastic Free July is a global movement that encourages people to reduce single-use plastics. While it’s often associated with straws and grocery bags, the fashion industry plays a huge role in plastic pollution, too.

Many synthetic fabrics like polyester, nylon, and acrylic are made from plastic and shed microplastics every time they’re washed. These tiny particles end up in our oceans, harming marine life and entering the food chain.

Clothes made from organic, natural fibers are more durable. They stay in circulation longer, reducing the need for new plastic-based textiles and mitigating the waste polluting our planet.

You’re an important part of Passion Lilie Pre-Loved!

This platform can’t exist without you. It’s a new way to shop Passion Lilie and give new life to the clothes you’ve loved. It’s a win-win: you can clear out space in your closet and help someone else find a beautiful, consciously made garment they’ll love. The Pre-Loved platform makes it easy to:

• Resell your gently worn Passion Lilie items for store credit
• Shop secondhand styles that are still in beautiful shape
• Be part of the solution to protect the environment by reducing waste and making fashion more circular

This is a big step in our sustainability journey, and we’re so excited to take it with you. If you have questions about the Pre-Loved process, please visit our FAQs page.

Join us in the loop!

This Plastic Free July and beyond, we hope you’ll join us in the circular fashion movement. Every small action adds up! Shop Pre-Loved, make the switch to organic cotton, reduce, reuse, re-wear.

Changing the way we think is hard, but we can do it! From now on, fashion is a circle instead of a straight line that ends in a landfill. We’re glad you’re with us on this journey!