Hi, I'm Megan
Creator
supply chain
professional
Slow fashion
advocate
imperfect
environmentalist
FROM FAST FASHION ADDICT TO Slow fashion connoisseur
I started this website in 2012 because I heard that bloggers got free clothes. And I really wanted free clothes. My blog – called Tunes & Tunics at the time – was all about micro-trends, pinterest fashion inspo, and fast fashion “deals”. My tagline at some point was even “fashion on a babysitter’s budget”. I saw fashion the way that the industry wanted me to see it: style = trends. I spent my weekends digging through new arrivals at mall fast fashion stores. For someone who wore a uniform in high school, I sure spent a lot of time and money and energy shopping for new clothes.
It wasn’t until I was assigned a research paper on the sustainability issues of the industry of our choosing in my first semester of college that I learned about the environmental and social impacts of the fashion industry. I watched The True Cost documentaryย and felt like I had to change everything about my blog and what I stood for. My sustainable fashion journey, which began while writing that research paper, has been an ongoing journey.ย Iโve fallen for greenwashing. Iโve purchased new clothing from fast fashion brands. Iโveย over-consumed. Iโve mindlessly consumed. But if thereโs one thing I have learned throughout my slow fashion journey so far, itโs that slow fashion isย a mindset.ย
MY "PROGRESS, NOT PERFECTION" APPROACH TO SUSTAINABILITY
My sustainable living journey almost ended immediately after it began. In 2016, as the anti-plastic straw pro-sea turtle movement was on the rise, I felt called to make more drastic sustainable changes to my lifestyle. I was focusing so much on sustainability in my closet, it only made sense to expand that focus outward! I looked for inspiration on social media and was bombarded with a bunch of highly curated, aesthetically pleasing, beige-looking photos of zero waste influencers with trash jars, capsule wardrobes, and pantries full of bulk goods in matching mason jars. While I thought these lifestyles were aspirational, I was a freshman in college living in a dorm with a closet full of colorful fast fashion and eating whatever was on the menu at the dining halls. That trash jar lifestyle seemed SO far from what I was capable of living and perfection paralysis took over. I gave up.
A few months later I decided I’d give the whole reusable straw thing a try. And once that swap became second nature, I decided I could try something else. Reusable cutlery sets turned into eating less meat and eventually I was composting, shopping in bulk, and taking more public transportation. The motto of this space is progress, not perfection. Making small, meaningful changes over time is a hell of a lot more realistic than becoming a vegan, minimalist, zero-waste tree-hugger overnight. I can tell you from experience that if you start small youโll feel more motivated to continue making progress.
Iโm an environmentalist. I use single-use plastic. I eat meat and dairy. I buy more stuff than I need. I am by no means a perfect conscious consumer and perfection is by no means my goal. My goal on this blog and in general is to inspire people to start small and do their best with the resources available to them. It’s about progress, not perfection.
From Upcoming supply chain professional to social media influencer
I decided to pursue higher education and a career in supply chain management in my junior year of college – just two years after learning about how the fashion industry (and especially fast fashion) can be detrimental to the planet and its people. I had a great foundation of general business knowledge but I felt like I needed to know more about what went into bringing a product to market to have any chance of changing the fashion industry for the better. At that time, most sustainable fashion conversations focused on changing things from the design stage of a product – reducing waste, choosing different materials, etc. Knowing I had a more analytical mind and didn’t see product development in my future, I thought learning more about supply chains would put me in a good position to catch the next wave of sustainable business innovation when the focus would inevitably shift beyond design.
I completed my M.S. just a few months into the COVID-19 pandemic. While supply chain professionals were in high demand and the world was just beginning to understand what a “supply chain” was, the fashion industry came to startling halt. I used my free time between virtual classes and zoom work to post about sustainability and slow fashion on TikTok, and over the course of a few months the silly blog I started in high school turned into a platform where I could share everything I knew about fashion, sustainability, and supply chains. And the best part was – there were people who wanted to listen.
While I see an eventual return to a more traditional supply chain or operations-related role in my future, being able to combine my love for slow fashion and sustainable living with my supply chain education and knowledge has been incredibly fulfilling. I’ve been invited as an influencer to an SAP conference, I was the COO/Co-Founder of an early-stage sustainable fashion rental startup, and have even used my spreadsheet expertise to get people across the world to perform spreadsheet-based closet audits!
More About Meg
ALMA MATER:ย University of Southern California, Marshall School of Business
Education:ย B.S. Business Administration (2019), M.S. Global Supply Chain Management (2020)
Most Impactful Slow Business Read:ย Strategy For Sustainability: A Business Manifesto
FAV SLOW FASHION PODCAST:ย Conscious Chatter
FAV SLOW FASHION ORG:ย ย Garment Worker Center
FAV CLIMATE Org:ย The Surfrider Foundation (I volunteer with Surfrider LA!!)