A Never-Ending "Unboxing"
With the holidays around the corner, you've probably seen an influencer pop up on your TikTok or Instagram posing with a large, toppling stack of frosted bags with the word "SHEIN" written across. Maybe you've seen a video of a curated "boo basket" around Halloween, or more recently, a "brr" basket for the upcoming holidays. Stacks upon stacks of clothing, jewelry, plushies, candles and candy fill our screens. Is all of this really necessary, or have we strayed from the spirit of the holidays?
Haul Culture
Along with the rise in popularity of short-format videos, a new genre of content has been born: the haul, where a person will sit down and show what they have purchased. The meaning of the word itself pertains to pulling something "slowly and with difficulty."
There are many complications with these hauls, mainly behind the support of unfair wages and questionable working conditions. This does not only pertain to ultra-fast fashion giants such as SHEIN and Temu, but also to stores such as Zara, H&M and beyond. There is an evident issue with the massive number of products that are being consumed, especially during the holiday season, that are quickly disposed of thanks to the short trend cycle and ever-evolving social media-induced "must-haves."
This rapid cycle of product usage to disposal leads to textile waste that is composed of mostly non-biodegradable materials. The European Parliament has provided the information that textile consumption in the European Union increased from 17kg per person in 2019 to 19kg in 2022. About 12 kg of clothing per person is simultaneously being discarded each year.
Evolving Expectations Around the Holidays
AUP junior Chloe Dybwad reflects upon the recent shift in the visual aesthetics of holiday decor. "I think a more modern sort of trend are these ever-changing ideas of what Christmas decorations should be, like 'old money,' Ralph Lauren Christmas," she says. "You don't need to change your Christmas decorations each year. You're just replacing what is made with love, like homemade ornaments and such, with what is trendy. We have lost a lot of the authenticity that comes with the Christmas season."
AUP junior Madeleine Horowitz notes how visual culture has become much more central to the holidays. "The lights and decor are being put up almost to put up a show," she explains. "The holidays feel much more promotional, with eye-catching setups created to draw people in."
A Wider Cultural Shift
The normalization of such large-scale consumption and constant unboxing has influenced people to evaluate their own habits and relationships with material goods. Project Pan, for example, has become increasingly popular over the past year and encourages mindful consumption of makeup and skincare products.
Social media and haul culture makes comparison inherent, shaping our expectations about our own consumption in unrealistic ways. As digital culture continues to seep its way into our lives, the cycle will only continue. Yet these trends are evidently being noticed by viewers online and can be observed in our daily lives. As seen by newer initiatives such as Project Pan, people are effectively becoming more mindful and careful about their purchases.
