As trends come and go, there always seems to be a hot new article of clothing that is all the rage, and right now it is Parke and Daily Drills sweatshirts.

If you are on social media in any form, there is a good chance you have seen these two clothing brands, and if you are anything like me, you have been contemplating getting one of these sweatshirts for months now.

Daily Drills was founded in 2020 by a pair of best friends, Kennedy Crichlow and Mary Ralph Bradley. The founders talk about how they came about creating this brand and what the iconic “!!!” is on their clothing.

An article written by one of the founders, Kennedy Crichlow, explains the behind-the-scenes of creating a successful brand. This all took place in the height of the pandemic when “Ken was actively searching for the good in life and decided it was time to take a risk in her career” and in combination with “Ralph running her own social media agency and a loyal following on her personal Instagram account, which would create a strong foundation for their brand to build upon.”

The pair each started out by investing $10,000 into their brand. They saw success starting with their first-ever drop and knew this was something they wanted to continue. Throughout this article, they share their experiences as female entrepreneurs and encourage other women to do the same.

The pair even got a matching “!” tattoo to celebrate their first year milestone, as the “!” has become a huge part of their brand and business as a whole.

The pair, Ken and Ralph, share, “Our brand IS the exclamation point in our logo—we put emphasis on everything we do and approach each day with the energy of the ‘!!!.’ We want our customers to be excited to get dressed in Daily Drills, and that wouldn’t happen if our team wasn’t excited throughout every step of the process.”

It is an inspiration to see two women follow their dreams and build their brand. Their community and loyal customer base have only grown since starting their company, so it makes you wonder — are these sweatshirts and other clothing items really that amazing?

Like Daily Drills, another clothing company that has blown up in the past year is Parke.

Parke was founded in 2022 by Chelsea Parke. Parke says, “Parke pieces are designed for the everyday: the things you throw on for coffee runs, travel days, nights out, and everything in between. Each collection is made to be worn on repeat, styled with both high and low, and built to move with you through every part of your life.”

Parke started out with “upcycled vintage denim, which quickly evolved into full collections of everyday basics designed to make getting dressed effortless.”

Chelsea also shares her inspiration for the brand in an article published by Lepelclub , stating that after making a move to a different city, she needed a wardrobe change. “After the pandemic, I really dreaded wearing jeans, but there was something about being comfortable while still looking good that really interested me. From there, Park was born!”

Each brand message seems to be very sincere and honest, but some people on social media seem to be thinking differently.

A lot of people seem to think that these brands are almost “cult-like” with their following, and think it is absurd to charge well over $100 for a basic sweatshirt.

We as a society are all guilty of overconsumption and sometimes don’t know where to draw the line when it comes to purchases. There have been some pretty serious accusations on various social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram and Reddit about the truth of some of these clothing brands.

According to Daily Dot, a sustainability advocate and influencer accused Chelsea Parke of “sourcing its clothes from low-cost bulk suppliers, despite branding itself as transparent and intentional.” The influencer, Sustainable Fashion Friend, shared her findings on her TikTok page and created a six-part video deep dive on why Parke is not a brand you should be buying and supporting.

Sustainable Fashion Friend found footage of one of Chelsea Parke’s days in the life of running her business videos that was posted to TikTok, and was able to do a deep dive into this business. She was able to spot “documents among fabric samples that included names and addresses.”

Aside from the findings this influencer discovered, it is alarming that people are posting important, private and personal information to their social media without double-checking. As a business owner, one should be more aware of what they are sharing with the world.

In her first video of her six-part video series, she brings up her findings on Qingdao Gu Ang Industry and Trading Co., a bulk manufacturing company whose headquarters are in Shandong, China.

They sell all of their items on Alibaba , which is a site where a lot of very popular fashion brands find their suppliers. Many companies will buy from Alibaba and then put their label on these articles of clothing, pretending that they made them.

Many of these companies will buy these bulk products for a very cheap price, for example $10, and then will sell the same clothing on their website for over $100.

The findings from this influencer contradict a lot of what Chelsea Parke claims on her website, specifically in her brand message. This is where a lot of people start to have reservations about the brand.

In a Forbes Magazine article, they claim that Chelsea used “transparent marketing” to build her brand and loyal customer base, which is just not true. Chelsea herself even says, “I truly believe that transparency is the key to building a strong brand, in any sense.”

The hypocrisy in this statement is absurd.

Other brands are guilty of this too, one example being Daily Drills.

Sustainable Fashion Friend also has a video series on Daily Drills and their manufacturing and supply chain practices. Here is a link to one of her TikToks of her deep dive into the brand.

Specifically, the influencer mentions that they claim to be L.A.-based, which is not true. Import records show that it is not the case. They also do not have anything on their website talking about their production process, which some might consider a red flag.

In the Sustainable Fashion Friends caption to this video, she writes, “They claim they’re not about following trends. But they still push 15-minute flash sales, constant ‘selling out’ messaging, and no returns, which are all classic FOMO-based tactics.”

After hearing all of this information, you would think that people would be convinced not to buy these sweatshirts, but that is where you are wrong.

If you have been on a college campus recently, you would know that most college girls aged 18-22 have an article of clothing from Parke, Daily Drills or other similar clothing companies.

To many, this may not seem like a huge problem when compared to real-world issues, but this is part of something much larger — overconsumption.

This generation is so easily influenced by social media and content creators to buy unnecessary things because of how much time we are spending on social media platforms. How do we escape this never-ending cycle?

To be honest, I don’t know.

I myself am very guilty of overconsumption and always seem to be spending my hard-earned money — or my parents ‘ hard-earned money on things that I really just don’t need. However, when I find this research about brands I buy from, it makes me stop and think about my spending habits and what brands I should or shouldn’t be supporting.

Listen, I am not perfect. I spend my money on unnecessary things from time to time, but I like to think of it as a learning experience. I learn what to spend my money on, what to save and even what to invest my money in.

Even after all of this information and knowledge, there is still a part of me that still wants to buy one of these sweatshirts. I can’t even give you a good reason why. I think the sweatshirts are cute, but other than that, I have no good reason. And sometimes that is okay.

Life is short. Buy the sweatshirt or don’t. At least now you are more aware of the truth behind these brands and why it is best to lead with caution.

Natalie Dripchak is a junior at UT this year studying advertising. She can be reached at [email protected].

Columns and letters of The Daily Beacon are the views of the individual and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Beacon or the Beacon’s editorial staff.