LinkedIn weighs in on France's fight against fast fashion

Fast fashion enters the chat on LinkedIn

Long confined to lifestyle-focused social networks, conversations around fast fashion are now making their way onto LinkedIn. This topic, which sits at the crossroads of environmental concerns, ethics, and the circular economy, is increasingly engaging users, professionals, organisations, brands, influencers, and even political figures.

Traditionally a platform for professionals, businesses and corporate topics, LinkedIn is now witnessing its members take hold of the issue, giving rise to a genuine collective debate.

In just 15 days, more than:

• 530 companies and organisations spoke out on LinkedIn about fast fashion
• They were joined by more than 1 200 individual users, generating a total of 
• For a total of 36 300 reactions

A clear sign that beyond traditional spheres, a growing number of individuals, professionals and organisations are taking up the issue and engaging their communities.

It’s worth noting, by way of comparison, that while CSR has long been one of the leading topics on LinkedIn, fast fashion is emerging as an almost equally powerful driver of engagement. As shown in the reaction timeline below, engagement with fast fashion-related content (in blue) and CSR (in yellow) is nearly neck and neck. During key moments , such as the proposed anti–fast fashion bill in early June, fast fashion even outpaced CSR in terms of engagement. A strong signal that this issue is gaining serious attention, even on a platform with a professional focus.

French experts, journalists, business leaders, politicians and content creators - all taking a stand against fast fashion on LinkedIn.

Around this topic, various communities are actively mobilising. Beyond experts in the circular economy, responsible fashion, and ecological impact, other voices from diverse fields are also speaking out.

At the forefront, Yann Rivoallan, President of the French Federation of Women's Ready-to-Wear, stands out as the most influential figure. His posts, sharing accounte of his meeting with the Minister responsible for Commerce, the Senate's reintroduction of a ban on advertising for giants like Shein, and the adoption of the anti fast-fashion law, rank among his most engaging contributions

Alongside him, respected experts such as Maud Sarda, Jean-Marc Jancovici, and Clementine Colin Richard also feature prominently in this ranking.

Other business leaders have also joined the conversation, including Nicolas Houzé, CEO of Galeries Lafayette and BHV, Dominique Schelcher, CEO of Coopérative U, and Frédéric Mugnier, co-founder of the brand Faguo.

Figures from the media and influencer spheres, such as Juliette Quef, president of the media outlet Vert, and content creator Gaetan Gabriele, also rank among the most influential voices.

This diversity of engaged profiles, and their cross-sector reach, reflects the growing mobilisation on LinkedIn.

Many whistleblowers are now using LinkedIn to share news, data and strong positions on the fast fashion industry, notably the top three figures in the ranking: Yann Rivoallan, Maud Sarda and Jean-Marc Jancovici.

Their committed posts help inform and raise awareness among professional communities about the social and environmental challenges facing the industry:

Widespread mobilisation: organisations, associations and media sound the alarm on fast fashion on LinkedIn

LinkedIn is now establishing itself as a key space for expression and mobilisation against fast fashion, where numerous associations, media outlets and collectives are speaking out to denounce the industry’s excesses.

Engaged media such as Business of Fashion, and The Good Goods are among the most active, regularly alerting their communities with data, investigations and analysis on the social and environmental impact of the textile industry. Luxury second-hand giant Vestiaire Collective has also and continues to communicate on the topic

The French Senate has also made its mark with its LinkedIn communication around fast fashion, adopting an educational tone. Through posts such as “Anti–fast fashion law: why this bill?”, “Why fight fast fashion?”, and other explanations of the bill’s key issues, the institution has gathered over 130 reactions, a sign of the growing interest among LinkedIn communities in societal topics, even when raised by institutional voices.

Through media appearances by association leaders, direct calls-out on LinkedIn, sharing of news, and educational posts about legislation, organisations campaigning against fast fashion are using a variety of formats and angles to raise awareness among platform members.

Circular economy, strategy and innovation: key themes shaping the LinkedIn conversation

Conversations around fast fashion on LinkedIn are centred on several key themes. Slow fashion and responsible consumption are widely promoted, with hashtags such as #StopFastFashion and #EthicalFashion (highlighted in green in the hashtag cloud below). Innovations and new technologies in the fashion industry are also attracting attention, particularly initiatives aimed at reducing environmental impact (shown in purple in the cloud).

France's anti–fast fashion bill is also emerging as one of the most widely shared topics, often accompanied by analysis and strong opinions (highlighted in pink in the cloud).

Another strong trend emerging in the conversations is the analysis of major fast fashion brands’ strategies, which are being called into question. This is reflected in the use of hashtags such as #retailstrategy, #fashionbusiness and #brandstrategy (highlighted in blue).

Finally, several brands are at the heart of the conversation, including Shein, Temu and Zara, which appear in orange in the cloud below.

Shein, Zara and Temu dominate the fast fashion conversation on LinkedIn

Du côté des marques, plusieurs grands noms ressortent nettement des conversations autour de la fast fashion sur LinkedIn. Shein, comme mentionné plus haut, domine largement le classement avec 20% de mentions. Elle est suivie, à égalité, avec Zara et Temu, au centre de 8% des discussions.

Derrière ces trois marques, H&M (5% des conversations) et Primark (2% des discussions) restent également très présentent dans les débats associés à la responsabilité environnementale sur LinkedIn.

Zara, which ranks second in the list of most-mentioned brands, recently faced criticism on LinkedIn for its 50th anniversary campaign. One example is a post by Maud Sarda, who commented: “You may have seen this Zara film featuring 50 iconic models to celebrate its 50th anniversary? Well, 50 years of fast fashion is certainly something to celebrate!!”, Her post garnered 829 reactions.

Shein removed from VivaTech 2025 thanks to LinkedIn pressure

The recent VivaTech 2025 case is a clear example. Victoire Satto, founder of the media outlet The Good Goods, publicly called out the event’s organisers in a LinkedIn post, denouncing Shein’s participation in the 2025 edition of the trade show. Following swift mobilisation from her community and other LinkedIn users, VivaTech quickly announced that the fast fashion giant would be removed from its line-up.

Victoire Satto’s follow-up post sharing the decision received over 3,300 reactions, a clear sign that LinkedIn has become a powerful strategic tool for raising awareness and shaping public opinion.