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CIDER has exploded in popularity in recent years as a cheap ultra fast fashion brand, pumping out thousands of trendy styles on its website. Unfortunately, the brand receives our lowest score of “We Avoid”. We went on the hunt to find more sustainable alternatives to CIDER’s best sellers.
Conscious consumers should steer clear of CIDER
CIDER is an ultra fast fashion brand from Hong Kong that gained traction on TikTok since its launch in 2020. It’s a popular go-to brand for “hauls” among influencers, and the hashtag #ciderhaul currently has more than 52 million views.
Unfortunately, while its clothes are certainly trendy and suit a wide range of tastes, they are poor quality and destined for landfill after just a few wears. And while they may appear “affordable” up front, someone is paying the true cost for prices as low as £4 per top.
The brand rates “Very Poor” for environmental impact owing to its lack of lower-impact materials or action on reducing harmful chemicals or water use. It is also “Very Poor” for labour conditions as it does not publish sufficient relevant information to give a higher rating. As a shopper, you have the right to know how its products impact its workers. Finally, it is rated “It’s a Start” for animals, but only because it avoids most animal-derived materials other than wool across its products. However, there is no evidence it traces the wool nor has an animal welfare policy.
Overall, CIDER sits down there with those fast fashion brands we avoid at all costs, and gets our lowest possible score of “We Avoid” overall. While those low prices and fresh designs can be tempting, the conscious consumer is best avoiding CIDER. So, what is the alternative?
If you like CIDER’s aesthetics but are looking for alternative brands making a solid effort across the board for sustainability and ethics, we have good news. There are “Good” and “Great” brands making items similar to CIDER’s best-selling pieces but doing better for people, the planet, and animals.
The following items are high-quality closet staples picked for purpose by our editors. While these pieces may present a larger up-front cost, investing in a few select pieces you know you’ll love and wear for years to come costs far less than what a TikToker might spend on a #haul.
