“So, where do my clothes go once you collect them?”
Interested in what happens to your clothes and other preloved items once we collect them?
You’re not alone. In fact, it’s a question we’re regularly asked by visitors to our website and followers on social media. So, we decided to devote this blog to the journey your clothes take once we collect them – and to explaining how your chosen charity benefits.
Most importantly, we wanted to say a huge THANK YOU to all of you.
It’s been an incredible year and we couldn’t have done it without you. Your support is hugely appreciated by the Donate Clothes team and our wonderful partner charities.
First stop, the Donate Clothes warehouse
After collecting your clothes, your driver will deliver them to our warehouse where they’re passed over to our specialist team for inspection. We’re sure you wouldn’t send us anything that’s damaged or dirty 😉 – but we have to check that you’ve only included items that we’re able to sell: good quality adults’ and children’s clothing and shoes, handbags and belts, linen, towels and soft toys, as well as perfumes and toiletries.
After inspection, our warehouse team weigh and sort your clothes. When you think about donating your clothes to charity, most people assume that their items will end up in a high street charity shop. In fact, according to Wrap, 70% of used UK clothing heads overseas. And at Donate Clothes, your clothes are exported to Europe, Asia or Africa to find their new home – with your chosen charity receiving 82% of the profit.
Obviously, some clothes are suited to warmer climates and others to colder ones – but there’s more to it than that. For example, white shirts are popular in Pakistan while warmer coats head to Eastern Europe. Our experienced team use their judgement to make sure your preloved items have the best chance of ending up in a home where they’re needed.
Your chosen charity receives a report…
Once inspected, weighed and sorted, our team prepare a comprehensive report for the charity you’ve chosen to benefit from your donation. Every partner charity receives a monthly report, outlining their royalties based on the weight of items that we’ve collected. And for every tonne, your chosen charity receives 82% of the profits.
To give you an idea of the kind of quantities we’re talking about, during our first year of operation we collected 180 tonnes of preloved items from homes in the Birmingham and Bristol areas. However, we’re on a mission to operate a national service – as we expand into new areas, we’re increasing the volume of clothes we collect month-on-month.
…while your preloved items embark on a journey towards their new home
We then export your clothes and other preloved items to Europe, Asia or Africa, where they’re sold at an affordable price to people who need them. A significant chunk of the clothes we collect are fashionable, which makes them even more desirable to their new owners.
And thanks to your decision to donate rather than bin them, your clothes stay out of landfill and find a second home where they enjoy a new lease of life.
Is the ultimate destination of your preloved clothing something you find fascinating? Then you might be interested in this BBC article, which considers the impact of the second-hand clothing market on local industries in destination countries (as well the importance of donations such as yours to the charity sector as a whole).
Leaving you with a glow that you’re helping your chosen charity and the planet
The cost of our desire for fast fashion is gaining greater exposure – but there’s still a long way to go until we’re able to create a circular economy in the textiles industry. Not only are huge quantities of clothes produced, which carries a hefty environmental footprint in itself, but many are discarded after only being worn a handful of times – with 336,000 tonnes ending up in UK landfill each year.
Of course, we should all be trying to reduce our clothes consumption – this article has some fantastic tips on which fabrics to choose and how to extend the life of the clothes you have. However, when you’re ready to bid them farewell, by donating them via to a clothes collection service like ours, you’re keeping them out of landfill as well as raising funds a fantastic UK charity. (Check out of partner charities here.)
