Affordable sustainable clothing

The best affordable ethical clothing brands

Finding clothing that fits your style and values should be fun and easy. Luckily there are many affordable eco-friendly brands that also pay their workers fair wages. These are our favourites!

#1 Honest Basics

 

Honest Basics is a vegan brand that sells eco-friendly clothing for an affordable price similar to brands like H&M. All their clothing is produced in a single fairtrade and certified partner factory in Bangladesh, which they also visit regularly.  As the name gives away, they produce good quality basics for women, men and kids. If you are looking for a good, honest alternative for cheap fast-fashion brands, we recommend checking them out!

Browse affordable ethical clothing at Honest Basics

#2 No Nasties

 

No Nasties is an Indian vegan, fair trade and eco-friendly brand that makes a wide range of beautiful clothing for varying budgets. From elegant blouses and shirts to eye-catching summer dresses, they have got it! From this brand you'll find fashion for a fair price while the people working for the brand are also paid fairly. Their farmers and factory workers (almost 90% women!) are paid fair wages following fair and equal pay. Find out more about this brand and have a look for yourself!

Browse affordable ethical clothing at No Nasties

#3 Grab Your Garb

 

Grab Your Garb is a slow-fashion brand that produces fair fashion for fair prices. They are an antidote to fast-fashion and operate on a low-inventory basis. The tailors and support staff are paid a living wage and work in a free labour setting (with access to healthcare and other benefits). If your looking for affordable but fashionable ethical pieces, definitely take a look at this brand.

 

Browse affordable ethical clothing at Grab Your Garb

#4 Armedangels

 

Armedangels is one of the biggest sustainable fashion brands, because they produce on a bigger scale they are able to keep the cost per product lower compared to smaller sustainable fashion brands. They prioritize people over profit and produce in Fairtrade certificated factories or in factories that are being checked by the Fair Wear Foundation. They have a broad range of products at affordable prices comparable to fast fashion giants like Zara and Mango.

Browse affordable ethical clothing from Armedangels

These brands break the expensive image of sustainable fashion and make it more accessible. Besides affordability, there are also many brands producing colourful and stylish fashion in a sustainable way, battling the "sustainable is boring" stereotype.

Affordable Sustainable Fashion Tips

#1 Swap

Did you know the most sustainable fashion item is the one already made? If you have clothes that you're no longer wearing, you could swap these for an item from someone else's closet. Extra fun? Organize swapping parties with your friends to get your closet filled with fresh additions without the need to even open your wallet.

#2 Rent

If you're notorious for wearing your pieces only a few times before getting tired of them, see if you can rent instead. Nowadays there are plenty of apps to help you with that. From peer-to-peer renting apps like byrotation to leasing directly from brands like Mud Jeans renting your clothes is an affordable (and fun) alternative to shop sustainably.

#3 Shop secondhand

Either when you've fallen in love with a fast fashion item but don't want to support an exploitive system or if you're looking for a magical vintage piece; secondhand shopping has a lot to offer. Every city has charity shops and vintage stores where you can look for affordable sustainable fashion pieces, but you're even able to use apps like Vinted.

#4 Buy less

Coming from a former shopaholic, I know this may seem impossible, as you might already have fierce discussions with yourself about why you really need a new piece of clothing. Sometimes, indeed you do. However, most of the time people are shopping because of other reasons. In today's society shopping has become a cure for when you feel bad about something else in your life or as a reward for when you did something well.

My tip? Challenge yourself to stop buying/renting ANY clothes for at least a month to have a little shopping detox and rediscover your current closet. After that month, shopping might be less of an impulse and it allows you to ask questions before you buy.

• Why are you buying?
• Are you going to wear it over 50 times?
• Can you recreate this look with something already in your closet?
• Who and what are you supporting with this purchase?

By asking yourself questions before you buy and shopping less, you'll have more financial space to support brands that align with your values whenever you do shop.