Australia has a fashion problem. No, it’s not that we have no style and don’t know how to dress well; it’s that we overconsume fast fashion. We buy more clothes per person than almost any other country — around fifty-six new items each year — and most of them are worn fewer than ten times before being discarded. Fashion is now the world’s third-largest polluter, behind fossil fuels and agriculture. And it’s mainly fuelled by fast fashion. So, how can we make fashion more sustainable?
This weekend, an event is taking over Yagan Square, focusing on sustainable fashion: the Circular Fashion Festival. It’s all about the idea that what we wear should be made to last, loved for longer, and passed on with purpose. Behind it are four women who want to rewire the way Perth thinks about clothing: Hazel Law, Elsa Durward, Charlie Smith, and Heidy Sands.
What is sustainable fashion?
Sustainable fashion is about making more informed decisions around consumption: buying less, buying better, and making the most of what already exists. “It’s really about those items we’re going to love, wear, and keep for the long term,” says stylist Hazel Law. Her philosophy starts not in a shop, but in your own wardrobe. “Shop your wardrobe first,” she insists. “Fall back in love with what you already own.”
That simplicity is paired with innovation. Designers across Perth are experimenting with circular design, from repurposed textiles to fibres spun from food scraps. Co-founder Charlie Smith said, “We had an incredible designer that we featured during our rain square exhibition who actually created a garment out of food scraps, which is just incredible when we’re looking at that technological advancement, sustainable fashion really aims to push the envelope when it comes to innovation.”
For the festival team, sustainability isn’t a fad or checklist; it’s a mindset. “There’s something for everyone along the journey,” says Heidy Sands. “It can start with a clothing swap with friends or grow into a full exploration of new materials and technologies.” What connects it all is a sense of community. As Smith puts it, “Consumption can have community. When clothing carries a story, it means something — and we care for it more.”
Why we need to ditch fast fashion
If sustainable fashion is slow and intentional, fast fashion is the opposite — relentless, disposable, and damaging. Law is armed with the numbers: “Australia sends three hundred thousand tonnes of clothing to landfill each year — two hundred thousand here, and another hundred thousand shipped overseas. There are enough clothes on the planet right now to clothe the next eight generations.”
Beyond landfill, the social and environmental costs are staggering. Designers see their work copied within days by major retailers, stripping local makers of income and credit. “It takes years to build a collection,” says Smith. “And in seconds, it’s duplicated and sold for a fraction of the price. That’s not creativity, it’s exploitation.”
The story doesn’t end when we drop unwanted clothes in a donation bin. As Sands points out, much of it never reaches charity racks for several reasons. “A good percentage is unsellable,” she says, “and gets shipped to developing countries like Ghana, where it floods local markets, clogs waterways, and fuels chemical fires in landfills. Polyester is a petroleum-based material; it doesn’t break down. It burns.”
That’s why, for the Circular Fashion Festival, education is as crucial as aesthetics. The team wants attendees to leave not just inspired, but informed — aware that fashion’s impact stretches far beyond the mirror.
Where to shop for sustainable fashion in Perth
Thankfully, Perth’s circular fashion scene is thriving and stylish. The team’s admiration for designer Tegan Jacobs is unanimous. Her work, described by Smith as “fabric poetry,” blends craftsmanship and conscience. “She defies the stereotype of sustainable fashion being plain or shapeless,” says Law. “Her clothes are beautiful, wearable, and timeless.” Sands adds, “You can see every stitch. Nothing is mass-produced. It’s slow fashion at its best.”
For second-hand lovers, Vinnies Retro Op Shop is a treasure. Law even found her wedding dress there for just $100.00 — “less than the cost of dry cleaning,” she laughs. The Green Pear Consignment Boutique in Subiaco and Second Stories Designer Consignment take a more curated approach, educating shoppers on garment care and sustainability. St Pat’s RePatched transforms unsellable donations into one-of-a-kind upcycled pieces. At the same time, the Bindaring Clothing Sale proves second-hand fashion can have a significant impact — raising more than a quarter of a million dollars for the Red Cross last year.
These aren’t just stores. They’re communities; spaces where fashion has purpose, where garments gain a second life, and where consumers rediscover the joy of meaningfully made things.
Why you should go to the Circular Fashion Festival
The Circular Fashion Festival isn’t your average runway. It’s a living, breathing ecosystem of ideas: part art show, part community market, part movement. “Come and see it as runways, panels, conversations, mending, people, and stories,” says Smith. “Even I look at the program and think, oh yes, that fits in too. It’s so much more than you expect.”
Sands says Perth has been craving a major fashion event with real substance. “People should come expecting fashion, but with a difference; something meaningful, something that connects you to the clothes you wear.”
Unlike other fashion weeks that tack sustainability on as an afterthought, here it’s the backbone. “It’s not a tab on a website,” Law adds. “It’s the entire program.”The Circular Fashion Festival will take place on October 10th and 11th at Yagan Square. It’s free to attend, and more information, including the full program, can be found here.
