Ethical fashion is more expensive due to the process it has gone through to reach our closets, and we believe that any ethically made garment should be seen as an investment – one that will continue to serve you long after the first wear. When you pay for an ethically and sustainably made garment, you're investing in your future wearing it, a concept called 'wearable cost'.
Having said that, however, the price of a garment is not necessarily indicative of the ethical way in which it was produced. The markup from brands we associate as "designer" or "luxury" is astronomical and not always a direct reflection of the quality of the product nor the standards to which it is manufactured.
It seems that high class and high salaries don't necessarily go hand in hand.
The overpricing of products produced under the name of a certain designer brand is also due to exactly that: the name.
If a company has been around for a while and has established its brand as luxury in society, then that might be the luxury aspect we pay for.
Exclusivity is also another important factor as to why a higher price point does not mean ethical and sustainable production. Instead of reducing the price or donating the goods, some of these companies go so far as to burn unsold goods so that those who cannot afford them at retail price do not have access to them. As with most companies driven by the exclusivity trend, this keeps the price high and often no thought is given to the final stage of the product's life or its place in the closed system.
Ethical fashion is more expensive because every care you can imagine, from the type of materials used to the wages that workers are paid to create the clothes, is taken into account. The whole concept behind ethical fashion is that any garments that fit into the category will last far longer than any fast fashion imitations, while retaining their signature element of timelessness.
As you've seen above, don't be fooled just because an item is expensive doesn't mean it's ethically produced.
Make sure you check the company's transparency about its environmental impact and the traceability of its materials, if you're not sure about its ethical merits, then skip it. /BGNES