Why does a t-shirt cost less than a coffee? Something doesn’t add up.

When you buy fast fashion, cheap doesn’t become expensive later. It was already expensive. It’s just that you didn’t pay that price directly.

Someone else paid it. The planet pays for it. And sooner or later… you will pay for it too.

Let’s break it down:

🩸 1. The human price

In 2013, the Rana Plaza building collapsed in Bangladesh. 1,134 people died. They were all working in inhumane conditions making clothes for brands like Primark, Mango, and Benetton. Most of them were women. They were earning less than 3 dollars a day.

Today, 10 years later, not much has changed. A report by the Clean Clothes Campaign revealed that textile workers in Asia continue to sew 12 hours a day for wages that aren’t enough to eat.

And they do it so the West can have $5 t-shirts.

🌍 2. The environmental price

According to the UN, the fashion industry is responsible for 20% of global water waste and 10% of carbon emissions. It is more polluting than all international flights and maritime shipping combined.

A single polyester garment (the material most used by brands like H&M and Shein) can take up to 200 years to degrade. And yet, more than 100 billion new garments are produced every year.

💀 3. The psychological price

Fast fashion sells you dopamine. A false sense of novelty. But the thrill lasts as long as an Instagram story.

Psychologists are already talking about “digital compulsive consumption”: buying out of anxiety, boredom, or social comparison. Having more and feeling like less. Filling up on the outside to avoid looking inside.

So… what do we do?

Start by looking at the label. Question. Buy less. Choose better. Invest in clothes that last more than one season. Clothes that feel like you. That don’t wrinkle with the passage of time or thought.

At Elemental, we don’t believe in massive sales, because we don’t believe in inflating prices just to “offer discounts” later.

What we do is design pieces with meaning. Few, but powerful. Timeless. Real.

So the next time you see a $3 t-shirt, ask yourself: who is paying the difference?

And if you decide not to fall into the fast fashion trap… welcome to the other side.

Welcome to Elemental.