The Importance of Love Island’s Change in Sponsor

01/06/2022

I don’t know about you but over the last few years, when I’ve tuned into Love Island I’ve subconsciously associated it with fast fashion due to the previous sponsorship deal it had with the likes of I Saw It First, Boohoo, Missguided etc.

However, after five years Love Island have decided to switch things up and partner with eBay (yes I know EBAY) for 2022 and I can’t tell you how thrilled I was about the news.

Love Island is one of the most popular reality TV shows in the UK, with the majority of contestants churned out automatically turning into the role of influencer and gaining sponsorship deals with the top fast fashion companies (Missguided, Pretty Little Thing, Boohoo etc.)

If you’re a long time follower, you’ll know how much I loathe these companies and how they’re promoting an unsustainable lifestyle when it comes to fashion. A couple of years ago I wrote this post about how during the ad breaks for Love Island, Missguided were advertising a £1 bikini and there was complete outrage (well, especially from me) about what impact this throwaway culture was having on the workers creating the garments and the planet.

Missguided have been on a downward spiral since this incident, suffering financial losses, providing subpar service to customers, failing to pay suppliers and most recently making many workers redundant through a pre-recorded message. With the terrible business performance and bad press, I’m not surprised that ITV decided to ditch them, although was shocked to see who they decided to go with.

Now, why is their switch to eBay such an important step? The influence that Love Island has on the nation is substantial and they’ve made an incredibly bold statement in promoting secondhand, pre-loved clothing which is likely to have a ripple effect. We’ve seen in the past what their sponsorships have done for previous companies and if they’re able to have the same impact when it comes to secondhand fashion, then we might well start to see a knock on effect in the fashion industry.

With that in mind, I’ll be heading off to eBay to find some new bargains before the season kicks off tonight! Let me know if you want some tips for finding the perfect bargain on eBay in the comments – I’ve been at it for years and think I could help those new to the secondhand fashion world!