The addiction to variety

A capitalist society depends on consumerism i.e. a population with changing tastes, which prefers to buy vast quantities of goods and services. Whether it is good or bad is obviously the question.

Let the me focus on one part of consumerism, specifically, on clothing. If you were to assess sartorial patterns throughout history, you would notice that the haves possess more changes of clothing than the have nots. Even then, repeat outfits were normal and expected. Mechanisation created mass production, but the use of pure natural fibres meant quantities were still comparatively limited. Then came the invention of polyester and nylon, which revolutionized clothing.

The invention of synthetic fibres have been a tremendous asset to specialty clothing, shoes, equipment and gear. They are lighter, more durable, waterproof etc. thus, reducing the strain on carrying out activities. However, like with most inventions, their usage isn't only limited to it's original objective. Synthetic fibres can mimic natural fibres, and can be spun at a much faster and cheaper rate because they do not rely on the supply of natural raw materials. This meant producers were able to manufacture clothes at much larger volumes over time, which unsurprisingly reduced the market price of clothes produced with synthetic materials. This allowed firms to create a larger selection of products, which shaped the tastes of customers to desire more variety; as consumers bought more, it in turn incentivised firms to produce more (and the feedback loop kept going). Over time, the cheap mass production of synthetic clothing has been both beneficial and problematic: beneficial because it provided access to design and style in budget constrained markets. Problematic, because we now have a waste problem. Synthetic fibres are basically plastic derivatives, which means they don't decompose like natural fibres.

There have recently been a few concerted efforts by the clothing community to address the problem directly. However, as a society we have spoiled our preferences and taste to desire variety on the cheap. How will we revert to habits where we are happy with owning fewer items, produced perhaps more expensively using natural fibres (therefore keeping total expenditure of clothing approximately the same), but which also means repeating outfits? Not to mention, natural fibres are also better for your body's comfort (which might be more relevant for pieces of clothing closer in contact to skin).