The fashion detox challenge: supporting Scotland's transition to a circular economy

The Fashion Detox Challenge is an experimental intervention designed to overcome complex barriers and systemic lock-in to overconsumption at the level of the individual consumer. This ongoing public challenge involves a ten-week process of voluntary abstinence and reflection. Aimed at interrupting the flow of automatic actions relating to clothing consumption, the process invites the consumer to deliberate afresh over less conscious behaviour, in an individual and online group setting. This paper focuses on data collected from the launch of the Fashion Detox Challenge in Scotland. Findings from a phenomenological study are outlined which detail the participants’ transition from emotionally motivated impulse buying to the development of more mindful consumption behaviours. This study also includes an innovative focus on the perceptual barriers connected to extending clothing use and reducing clothing consumption at the level of the individual consumer.