To have outstanding travel photos on social networks, a new consumption trend is forming in a part of young Chinese people: buying clothes just to wear once or twice.
These outfits are very cheap, eye-catching in design and mainly serve the "photo editing" needs. After taking photos, buyers can resell them on used goods platforms or directly discard them, creating a fashion consumption style revolving around creating beautiful photos on social networks.
Once-worn clothes" are mainly cheap outfits purchased specifically for a trip, sightseeing spot or festivals, parties. Styles are quite diverse, from long dresses in ethnic style, special coats to striking neon coats. The selling price is usually only about 15-50 yuan (about 50,000-190,000 VND).
Tieu Vu, a female student who just finished the university entrance exam, shared that during a 7-day trip, she prepared 5 sets of "one-piece" clothes, with a total cost of less than 200 yuan (about 770,000 VND). After taking photos, she quickly posted these outfits for sale on a used goods trading platform.
Along with the spread of this trend, on social networking platforms like Xiaohongshu, there are more and more posts summarizing "one-size-fit clothes" and instructions on how to coordinate clothes according to each tourist destination.
Many sellers on Chinese e-commerce platforms even directly use phrases such as "specialized clothing for photography" or "tourist photo assistants" to promote, targeting young customers with limited budgets but wanting to create outstanding visual effects.
Behind the cheap price are concerns about quality and hygiene
Although "one-piece clothing" helps meet image needs on social networks at a low cost, the cheap price also comes with many quality issues.
Most products on the market are made from low-cost synthetic fabrics such as polyester, chiffon, lace or thin denim. Some products are reflected to have rudimentary seams, many excess threads and poor high-quality materials.
In addition, the fact that many clothes are only worn once and then returned to the used goods market also raises debate about hygiene issues. Some consumers are concerned that used clothes can be resold without being cleaned or fully disinfected.
The trend of using "one-piece clothes" helps young people quickly have eye-catching photos at a low cost, but at the same time raises issues related to consumer rights and the sustainability of the fashion industry.
