Degrowth as a precondition for circularity in fashion: a stakeholder-based analysis
Abstract
Introduction: The fashion industry epitomises capitalism’s growth imperative, driving ecological degradation and social harm through overproduction and overconsumption. Circularity—based in decoupling, dematerialization, efficiency, and innovation—is the dominant response from industry and policymakers. Critics argue circularity has been misappropriated by green growth, sustaining business-as-usual while deflecting attention from production volumes. This study investigated whether degrowth is a necessary precondition for achieving circularity in fashion. Materials and methods: This study examined stakeholder perspectives across the fashion industry, drawing on 23 semi-structured expert interviews analysed via reflexive thematic analysis. Results: In total, 74% of stakeholders agreed that circularity in fashion is not possible without first reducing overproduction and overconsumption. The analysis further found stakeholder agreement on complementarities between degrowth and circularity: degrowth, sufficiency, and policy (top-down) must be coupled with circularity, efficiency, and innovation (bottom-up) to transition fashion away from today’s harmful linear system. Conclusions: This study advanced a ‘Degrowth to the Doughnut’ framework, sequencing degrowth ahead of circularity and operationalising efficiency and sufficiency in tandem. The study concludes with stakeholder-informed policy recommendations to address overproduction.