Is Bloom Chic Fast Fashion? How Ethical & Sustainable is Bloom Chic

Bloom Chic is fast fashion. Discover the truth behind its rapid releases, synthetic materials, and pricing strategies. Learn about its ethical and sustainable practices.
Written by: 
Ash Read
Last updated: 

Yes, Bloom Chic is a fast fashion brand. Its entire business model - from frequent, trend-driven collection drops to its reliance on low-cost synthetic materials and aggressive pricing - firmly places it within this category.

The brand's ethical practices are concerning due to an extreme lack of supply chain transparency and an absence of commitments to fair labor or living wages. Environmentally, its heavy use of fossil fuel-based fabrics and lack of public sustainability goals contribute to a significant negative impact. Here's what you need to know about Bloom Chic's practices:

What Makes Bloom Chic Fast Fashion?

Bloom Chic operates on the core fast fashion principles of speed, volume, and disposability, prioritizing rapid trend replication over quality and sustainability.

  • Rapid Production & New Arrivals: The brand releases new collections approximately every 4-6 weeks, producing over 1,000 unique styles annually. With a design-to-shelf timeline estimated at just 4-6 weeks, its model is built to capitalize on fleeting micro-trends.
  • Trend Replication: Bloom Chic’s design strategy focuses on quickly imitating runway and popular streetwear styles rather than creating original designs. This allows them to offer trendy items almost as soon as they appear in mainstream fashion.
  • Rock-Bottom Pricing: With dresses typically ranging from $20-$40 and t-shirts from $10-$15, Bloom Chic's pricing strategy makes its clothing highly accessible but encourages impulse buys and disposability. These prices are only possible through low-cost labor and cheap synthetic materials.
  • High-Volume Manufacturing: Production is primarily based in China, Bangladesh, and Vietnam, where a network of contractors allows the brand to scale production quickly. This model avoids the accountability that comes with owning factories and often leads to poor oversight.

Is Bloom Chic Ethical?

Bloom Chic's ethical performance is poor due to its complete lack of transparency regarding factory conditions, worker wages, and its supply chain.

Labor Practices

Bloom Chic manufactures in countries notorious for poor labor standards but provides no details on its factories or working conditions. Reports from the region show that garment workers often face excessive hours and wages far below a livable income. For example, garment workers in Bangladesh earn on average $180/month, while the estimated living wage is around $350/month.

Supply Chain Transparency

The brand's supply chain is completely opaque. Bloom Chic does not publish a list of its suppliers, share factory audit results, or hold any fair labor certifications like Fair Trade or SA8000. Without this information, it is impossible for consumers to verify if workers are treated and paid fairly.

Animal Welfare

As Bloom Chic primarily uses synthetic fabrics like polyester and nylon, it does not use animal-derived materials like leather, wool, or fur. However, the brand does not hold any formal PETA-Approved Vegan or Leaping Bunny certifications to verify its practices across the supply chain.

Where Bloom Chic Falls Short Ethically

  • Complete Lack of Transparency: The company refuses to disclose any information about the factories that make its clothes, making independent verification of its labor standards impossible.
  • No Commitment to Living Wages: Bloom Chic has made no public commitment to ensuring workers in its supply chain earn a living wage that can cover basic needs.
  • Absence of Third-Party Audits: There is no evidence that the brand works with independent third parties to audit factory conditions or ensure worker safety and rights are protected.

Is Bloom Chic Sustainable?

Bloom Chic's sustainability efforts are virtually non-existent. Its reliance on environmentally damaging materials and lack of forward-thinking goals place its practices squarely in the unsustainable fast fashion category.

Materials & Sourcing

An estimated 85-90% of Bloom Chic's clothing is made from virgin synthetic fabrics like polyester and nylon. These materials are derived from fossil fuels, are energy-intensive to produce, and release microplastics into waterways with every wash. There is no evidence of the brand using sustainable alternatives like organic cotton, TENCEL, or recycled materials at any meaningful scale.

Environmental Impact

The brand has published no data on its environmental footprint. There are no corporate targets for reducing carbon emissions, water usage, or chemical pollution from its manufacturing processes. Given its high volume and choice of materials, its actual impact is presumed to be substantial.

Circularity & Waste

Bloom Chic has no programs in place to address the end-of-life of its products. It does not offer repair services, textile recycling, or take-back programs. The low quality and trend-focused nature of its clothes means they are designed to be discarded quickly, contributing directly to the growing problem of landfill waste.

Sustainability Goals & Progress

The brand has not set any public, time-bound goals for improving its environmental performance. It holds no recognized certifications such as B Corp, Climate Neutral, or Bluesign, and shows no indication that sustainability is a corporate priority.

Where Bloom Chic Falls Short on Sustainability

  • Heavy Reliance on Virgin Synthetics: The overwhelming majority of its products are made from new, fossil fuel-based plastics rather than recycled or natural fibers.
  • No Public Environmental Goals: The brand completely lacks any commitments to reduce its carbon emissions, water consumption, or waste production.
  • Contributes to a Disposable Culture: The core business model of producing low-quality, trendy clothing encourages overconsumption and generates massive amounts of textile waste.

Our Verdict: Bloom Chic's Ethical & Sustainability Grades

Bloom Chic's practices are a textbook example of fast fashion's negative impacts. The profound lack of transparency and a clear absence of meaningful sustainability commitments make it a brand to avoid for conscious consumers.

Ethical Practices: D

Bloom Chic earns a D for its utter failure to be transparent about its manufacturing and labor practices. While there are no specific documented scandals, the complete opacity prevents any form of accountability and strongly suggests that ethical standards are not a priority. Sourcing from low-wage regions without providing proof of fair wages or safe conditions is unacceptable.

Sustainability: D

The brand scores a D for sustainability due to its heavy use of virgin synthetics, a complete lack of environmental goals, and the absence of any circularity initiatives. Its business model inherently promotes excess production and waste, directly undermining sustainability principles without any mitigating efforts.

Ethical & Sustainable Alternatives to Bloom Chic

If you're looking for brands that offer similar styles with a genuine commitment to people and the planet, consider these better alternatives:

Reformation

Reformation offers trendy, feminine styles with a focus on sustainable materials like recycled fabrics and Tencel. As a certified B Corp and Climate Neutral company, they provide detailed sustainability reports and transparency about their factories.

Shop now at thereformation.com

People Tree

A pioneer in ethical fashion, People Tree is Fair Trade certified and uses almost exclusively organic cotton and other natural fibers. They guarantee living wages and safe working conditions, making them a leader in both ethical and environmental responsibility.

Shop now at peopletree.co.uk

Eileen Fisher

Known for timeless designs and high-quality, durable garments, Eileen Fisher is a B Corp that invests heavily in circularity through its take-back program. The brand uses a high percentage of organic and regenerative materials and maintains transparency about its supply chain practices.

Shop now at eileenfisher.com

Outerknown

Outerknown is committed to circularity by 2030 and is entirely Fair Trade Certified, ensuring fair wages for all its garment workers. They focus on using sustainable materials like ECONYL regenerated nylon and organic cotton, offering casual and modern styles.

Shop now at outerknown.com

Patagonia

While known for outdoor gear, Patagonia's commitment to sustainability makes it an exceptional choice for durable clothing. As a B Corp and 1% for the Planet member, they extensively use recycled materials, offer lifetime repairs to fight disposability, and are transparent about their robust Fair Trade program.

Shop now at patagonia.com

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Bloom Chic so affordable?

Bloom Chic's low prices are a direct result of its fast fashion model. They are achieved by using cheap, mass-produced synthetic materials, manufacturing in countries with extremely low labor costs, and producing in high volumes to reduce the cost per item.

Does Bloom Chic use any sustainable materials?

Evidence suggests Bloom Chic's use of sustainable materials is negligible, likely below 10% of its total material use. An estimated 85-90% of their collection is composed of virgin, fossil fuel-based synthetics like polyester and nylon.

Is Bloom Chic an ethical company?

Based on available information, Bloom Chic does not operate ethically. The brand's refusal to disclose its factory locations, audit reports, or worker wage data makes it impossible to verify its claims and indicates a severe lack of commitment to ethical responsibility.