Many aspects of the way people dress today are influenced by global fashion trends. How has global fashion become such a strong influence on people’s lives? Do you think this is a positive or negative development?
Introduction
When you write your IELTS essay, you should begin with an introduction by paraphrasing the question and clearly stating your opinion, especially when the question asks whether something is positive or negative.
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Plan your answer
Before you start writing, don’t rush. Spend around 5–8 minutes planning your essay.
- First, decide clearly what your opinion is.
- Next, choose two main points to support that opinion.
- For each point, think of specific explanations or real-life examples.
Body paragraphs
Once your plan is ready, it’s time to expand it into proper paragraphs. Each body paragraph should:
- Start with a clear topic sentence
- Develop the idea with an explanation
- Support it with a specific example
Conclusion
When writing a conclusion, you should:
- Summarise the main ideas discussed in the essay
- Clearly restate your opinion
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Sample answers
In today’s increasingly interconnected world, global fashion trends strongly influence how people dress. This influence has grown for several reasons, and in my view, this is a negative development overall.
One major factor behind the spread of global fashion is the rise of celebrity culture. People often try to emulate the public figures they admire, and in many cases, their clothing choices become immediate trends. For example, K-pop groups such as Blackpink and BTS regularly spark worldwide fashion crazes, with their outfits selling out within hours of a performance. In addition, the expansion of social media has accelerated the speed at which trends spread. Platforms such as Instagram and TikTok allow styles to go viral in a matter of minutes. A clear illustration is Prada’s Re-Nylon bag collection, which became a global hit in 2022 after a viral TikTok clip, resulting in long waiting lists across multiple countries.
Despite this widespread appeal, the consequences of global fashion trends are largely negative. Financially, it can put young people into debt. Young people often feel pressured to buy expensive branded items in order to fit in, leading many to overspend or even go into debt. Environmentally, the influence of fast fashion is highly damaging. Online culture encourages constant purchasing and discourages re-wearing clothing, which in turn generates enormous levels of textile waste and contributes to pollution.
In conclusion, global fashion has become highly influential due to celebrity culture and the speed of social media. However, its overall impact is negative because it promotes financial insecurity among young people and accelerates environmental damage through excessive consumption.
Useful Vocabulary
- global fashion trends = popular clothing styles that spread across many countries
- celebrity culture = a social trend where famous people strongly influence public behavior
- emulate = try to copy or imitate someone’s behavior or appearance
- spark worldwide fashion crazes = cause new fashions or styles to become popular globally
- sell out = be completely sold in a short period of time
- go viral = spread very quickly and widely online
- widespread appeal = popularity among a large number of people
- overspend = spend more money than is affordable or necessary
- go into debt = owe money because of excessive spending
- fast fashion = cheaply produced clothing designed to be worn for a short time
- discourage re-wearing = reduce the habit of wearing clothes more than once
- textile waste = discarded clothing and fabric materials
- celebrity culture = a social trend where famous people strongly influence public behavior
- environmental damage = harm caused to nature, such as pollution or waste
- excessive consumption = buying and using more than is necessary
