Clothing companies Zara and H&M are creating recycling areas in their stores to prevent and address the bad mentality that consumers have about throwing away clothes.
When you enter a department store, you have in mind to make a purchase and not to give away some old clothes that you no longer wear. Recently, clothing stores have been asking their customers to donate clothes that they no longer need.
The UK alone is estimated to send 235 million items to landfill, the majority of which could have been worn or recycled. Now several major companies are trying to combat this phenomenon.
Zara and H&M, wanting to go a step further, are urging their customers to leave their unwanted clothes in bins, while companies such as Adidas and the Kering group (owner of companies such as Alexander McQueen or Gucci), have agreed to discuss the issue at the Fashion show that will take place in Copenhagen to set goals for the year 2020.
The idea is to promote the collection of fabrics and recycling while, at the same time, making an effort to reduce waste in landfills. But since when can these efforts be taken seriously when the companies themselves continue to create high levels of consumerism? H&M claims to have collected around 40,000 tons of clothing since 2013, which it supplies to a partner in Berlin.
BAD HABITS ARE HARD TO BREAK
But despite the investment from companies, consumer behaviour is proving difficult to change. Recent research suggests that 75% of Britons throw away clothes with their household waste.
WHAT HAPPENS TO RECYCLABLE CLOTHES
Cyndi Rhoades, founder of recycling company Worn Again, hopes that the rise of street clothes collection will start to be understood by citizens as just as important as recycling paper and plastic. “It’s part of a wider campaign to consumers to say that whether a garment ends up in a shop, a charity or a fabric collection site, clothes can be recycled.”
Collecting clothes is half the battle, says Rhoades, “what happens to the clothes once they’re collected is also important. Recycling natural fabrics and hair ends up in low-quality fabrics that can’t be reused, which in turn end up in landfills.”
Rhoades would like to see more brands invest directly in technologically innovative companies, where the raw material is collected and transformed into competitive fashion materials. “There’s little capital invested in research and development. Without the help of companies, there won’t be solutions in the market,” she said.
Jade Wilting, program coordinator for Circle Textiles, a social enterprise at Circle Economy, agrees that companies have a responsibility to fund the infrastructure and technology needed to find cost-effective solutions. “We should ask ourselves why we consume at such a high rate,” Wilting concluded.
Buying fewer clothes would not only help the environment, but it would also increase our well-being, says Rhoades. “The consumer expects to keep up with fashion trends and update their wardrobe, but research has shown that this expectation creates a feeling of inner emptiness.”
Source: www.theguardian.com
