Implications of Fast Fashion's Second-Hand Clothing Market on Seamstresses in the Ghanaian Textile Industry

Researchers have argued that fast fashion's second-hand market has affected seamstresses' lives in various facets from business to livelihoods. This study seeks to explore effects the fast fashion's second-hand clothing market has on seamstress' business and livelihoods in Ghana. It also asks the question about how relevant formal and non-formal education is in the trade. Drawing on 12 semi-structured interviews in Accra, I argue that background, location, skill and education of seamstresses all contribute to the level of impact experienced by the SHC market on their business and livelihoods. The results suggest that there are both positive and negative impacts of the fast fashion second-hand market. The results also show that the effects of education are complicated, as both formal and non-formal avenues of training are accepted in the custom-made industry. Furthermore, fast fashion is portrayed as just one of the many ways neoliberalism affects the economy and the movement of materials between the global North and the global South.