When I started my first fashion label, I thought success meant scale. I thought I needed racks of stock, glossy campaigns, wholesale accounts lined up, and a calendar of launches that made me look 'serious.' That’s what the industry tells us, right? Bigger is better. Scale is success.
But here’s what really happened. I spent late nights on my lounge room floor cutting out patterns. I packed boxes on my kitchen counter. I hand-stitched my labels on. I scribbled thank-you notes in the car on my way to the Post Office. On weekends I stood behind a market stall, explaining to strangers why my dresses cost more.
None of that scaled. None of it looked glamorous. None of felt like success.
At the time, it felt a bit scrappy, a bit small. But those tiny, human, unpolished moments were the reason people remembered me. They weren’t just buying clothes, they were buying into me, my values, my care. Years later, when I moved my label online, and then built out an online store for over 100 ethical and sustainable fashion brands, some of those customers were still following my journey. Not because I scaled quickly, not because I always did things perfectly, but because I showed up personally in the early days.
That’s the heart of this whole idea. In the beginning, the things that don’t scale are the things that matter most, especially when we live in a business culture obsessed with funnels, hacks, and anything that will 'explode your growth'.
But the reality for most purpose-driven founders is that growth doesn’t look like that. At all.
In the early years of a slow fashion brand, growth looks like long conversations with customers at markets. It looks like DM’ing people one-by-one for hours on end. It looks like meticulously choosing the pen colour you sign off your thank-you notes with.
It looks small. It feels small. But it’s not.
Because those moments are how you learn what actually matters to your customers. They’re how you find your first loyal advocates. They’re how you make people feel seen in a world that treats them like data points.
And you can’t skip this stage. You can’t outsource it. You can’t automate it. It’s uncomfortable sometimes, and exhausting, but it’s where the magic is. It's the magic in the start-up mess.
And it's also slow fashion's advantage.
Fast fashion is built to scale. It's all about speed, systems, and faceless efficiency. But slow and sustainable fashion is about something else entirely: connection, care, and trust.
That means our advantage is actually in the things that don’t scale. A handwritten note matters more than a discount code. A founder voice note on Instagram means more than a glossy ad. A behind-the-scenes photo of your cutting table, messy threads and all, builds more trust than a slick campaign.
Fast fashion can’t do that. It can’t be personal. It can’t be slow. And that’s exactly why doing the unscalable is so powerful for you.
And here are a few ways you can 'do what doesn’t scale' in your brand right now...
Write personal notes. Slip a handwritten card into first orders. Share why their purchase matters, or the story of the fabric. Customers remember this attention to care.
Host tiny gatherings. Invite 10 customers into your studio, or hold a styling night at a café. You might reach fewer people than you would with a Reel, but those 10 people will become storytellers for your brand.
DM with intention. Instead of chasing followers, send genuine welcome messages. Ask about their style, their values. Start conversations, not transactions.
Handle problems personally. When something goes wrong like a broken zip or a shipping delay, don’t hide behind policy or a fake customer care name. Pick up the phone, send a voice note, apologise with care. These moments can turn customers into lifelong fans.
Spend time with your makers and suppliers. Learn their stories. Show up for them. That energy flows into your products and your marketing.
Ask for feedback in person. Forget faceless surveys. Take a loyal customer out for coffee. Ask what they love, what confuses them, what they’d change. Those conversations will give you gold you’ll never find in analytics.
None of this is efficient. None of it scales easily. But it’s exactly what will make you unforgettable.
And it's proven, time and time again, that this kind of personal, unscalable stuff works. So why do we resist it so much?
I don’t have time. It feels awkward DM’ing people. I don’t want to look unprofessional by doing things in such a small way.
I hear you. I’ve felt all of that.
Doing the unscalable forces us out of our comfort zone. It feels messy when the world is telling us to look polished. It feels inefficient when everyone else is hustling faster.
But the brands that stand out are the ones brave enough to show up human. And fast fashion can’t replicate human. That’s your USP.
So what about when you're doing all that and you're ready to actually scale, what then?
Well of course, the goal isn’t to hand-write notes forever or personally DM thousands of customers. At some point, you will need systems, automation, and processes. The trick is knowing when.
Here are a few signs you’re ready...
- You’re consistently selling out of small runs.
- You have repeat customers without chasing them.
- You’re getting more enquiries than you can handle personally.
- You’re hearing the same positive feedback patterns again and again.
That’s when you can start building systems without losing the soul. Because by then, you know what your customers actually care about. You can design your marketing, packaging, and processes to reflect those values, instead of guessing.
And 'doing what doesn’t scale' isn’t just good business. It’s also good for the planet.
By running small batches and testing manually, you avoid overproduction and waste. By talking to customers directly, you educate them about conscious consumption. By building loyalty through care, you fight the cycle of disposability.
The slow, unscalable work doesn’t just build trust. It builds a more sustainable fashion industry.
And it took me a decade to test it, to learn it, to live it, to prove it.
When I was running The Fashion Advocate as an online store, I packed every single order myself. I’d wrap garments in responsibly sourced tissue and slip in a handwritten card. Sometimes I’d tuck in a little dried flower from my garden. It was late-night, floor-covered-in-boxes work.
And do you know what people posted on Instagram most often? Not the clothes. Not the speed of shipping. The handwritten notes. The flowers. The little details that showed I cared.
Years later, through business evolution, going from a label to a large scale store to a community and fashion business coaching platform, some of those customers came with me into my mentoring work. They didn’t remember exactly what they bought but they remembered how I made them feel.
That’s the power of doing what doesn’t scale.
So, my challenge to you, is to try this for 30 days.
For the next month, pick one unscalable action and do it consistently.
Write 10 thank-you notes.
DM 5 new followers with genuine curiosity.
Take 3 customers for coffee.
Call a supplier just to check in.
See what happens. Watch how your relationships shift. Notice how people respond. You’ll realise that the effort isn’t wasted, it’s compounding.
And if all you take away from this is one thing, let it be this...
The unscalable, human-intensive work isn’t a burden. It’s your advantage.
Slow fashion isn’t about shortcuts. It’s about care, intention, and connection. Those things will never scale neatly and that’s exactly why they’re so valuable.
So next time you feel behind because you’re not growing 'fast enough,' stop. Instead of asking, 'How do I scale?' ask, 'What unscalable thing can I do today that will delight my customer?'
That’s where sustainable growth begins.
If you love this approach, you'll love my Slow Fashion Lab.
Claire x
