The state of fashion

July 3, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

In 2020, Aparna Mehta, a global solutions director for UPS, was in a meeting with a major retailer when a client mentioned that the company had processed 7.5 million returned pieces of clothing in a single year. Mehta, who was also a prolific online shopper receiving 12 to 15 clothing deliveries per week, suddenly saw her own habits in a new light. That moment of reckoning sits at the heart of this episode of the TED Radio Hour, which examines the fashion industry from three angles: the joy of self-expression through clothing, the environmental and logistical costs of how we buy and return clothes, and the human exploitation that has long been hidden behind the glamour.

The case for maximalism

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What you'll learn

1 (01:01) **Episode Introduction: The State of Fashion** - Host Manoush Zamarodi introduces the episode's theme: exploring the extremes of fashion, from maximalism to the environmental and ethical costs of the industry.
2 (01:41) **Machine Dazzle: The Maximalist Makeover** - Host visits costume designer Machine Dazzle in his Jersey City workshop for a "maximalist makeover," contrasting his philosophy with modern minimalism.
3 (06:00) **Machine Dazzle: Costumes as History** - Machine describes his 2016 performance "24 Decade History," featuring 24 costume changes that tell the story of America from 1776 to the present.
4 (10:00) **The Maximalist Transformation** - After the makeover, the host feels a shift in confidence, embracing the "maximum" and feeling like a "walking piece of art."
5 (15:47) **The Problem with Online Shopping** - The episode shifts to the environmental and logistical impact of online shopping, focusing on the high rate of returns.
6 (19:22) **The Returns Machine** - Amanda Mull, a Bloomberg reporter, explains how free returns were a deliberate strategy by early online retailers like Zappos to build consumer trust, creating a habit of buying with the intent to return.
7 (22:26) **Inside a Returns Facility** - Amanda describes visiting a massive returns processing facility, where workers manually inspect, sniff, and process about 100,000 packages a day.

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Show Notes

Whether you love fashion or hate it, we all have to get dressed in the morning, and the industry affects us in complex ways. This hour, the outrageous, environmental and seedy sides of fashion.

Guests include designer Machine Dazzle, supply chain expert Aparna Mehta, journalist Amanda Mull and supermodel Cameron Russell.

Original broadcast date: September 6, 2024

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