Niha Elety developed her love for sustainable fashion when she moved to Hyderabad, India at the age of 11.

“The production of textiles was inherently sustainable — especially when we could build relationships with local artisans, block printers, local tailors, which is something that a lot of consumers are aware of, and participate in,” says Elety, a 24-year-old South Asian sustainability blogger and fashion designer who currently resides in Dallas, Texas.

“Growing up [in the U.S.], I just thought clothing was made by machines, I didn’t know there were people behind the clothes. And I wasn’t super aware of the process.”

Sustainable fashion has been making waves lately on TikTok and other social media platforms with viral thrift haul videos. The secondhand apparel market is expected to grow 127% by 2026, according to a recent report from thredUP, an online consignment and thrift store.

Gen Z and millennials make up a major proportion of these shoppers — and 62% say they look for an item secondhand before purchasing it new.

That said, the fast fashion industry is still going strong, and its primary demographic is made up of young women trying to stay in style without breaking the bank.

With prices rising, it’s taking both creativity and determination to strike a fitting balance between sustainability, affordability and style.

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