Why We Retykle: The Greener Alternative
Consider this before you donate your used children's clothing
Every parent will agree that the rate at which children outgrow clothes is alarmingly fast! Clothes and shoes, lovingly bought for our children are too quickly moved out of their wardrobes to make room for new sizes. Children speed through seven sizes of clothing in their first two years of life, and will outgrow over 1500 articles of clothing before they are fully grown! Knowing this, it is worth considering the best way to mindfully re-purpose your child's outgrown clothes, shoes and accessories so that they have minimal impact on our environment.
It is a well-known fact that the fashion industry is the second largest polluter in the world second only to oil. The statistics make for scary reading with garment production using approximately 1/3 of the world’s water resources to the high levels of textile waste sent to landfill. The rise of fast fashion has only made things worse with the number of garments produced annually doubling since 2000.
Making eco-conscious choices about your child's clothing starts with buying good quality up front. Avoiding fast-fashion (synonymous with low prices and low quality), and buying brands that are built to last will ensure their clothing is fit for resale or to be passed on, not sent to the recycling bin or to landfill.
A common misconception is that donating clothing to charity is “doing the right thing”. While this is still a better alternative than throwing used items in the bin, sadly only 20% of donated clothing ends up being reused* with the rest often travelling great distances to recycling facilities and landfills. Unfortunately the convenience of charity bins has helped to fuel our fast-fashion consumer culture, making it too easy for people to buy and discard more clothes than they actually need with seemingly no consequence.
*Global Fashion Agenda and The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. (2017), Pulse of the Fashion Industry
The facts show that there is a huge consequence for the environment. Approximately 125,195 tonnes of textiles were sent into Hong Kong landfills in 2016^. Hong Kong has already filled 13 landfill sites that have now been re-purposed as parks, golf courses and sports grounds. There are only three remaining sites, and experts have said that Hong Kong could reach breaking point by 2020 if no changes are made to consumer buying habits.
^ Hong Kong SAR, Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department (2018) Monitoring of Solid Waste in Hong Kong - Waste Statistics for 2016
An estimated 92 million tons of textile waste is created annually from the fashion industry and is estimated to increase by about 60% between 2015 and 2030, with an additional new 57 million tons of waste generated annually.
Global Fashion Agenda and The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. (2017), Pulse of the Fashion IndustryChoosing high quality kids items and caring for them so that they can stay in the cycle for as long as possible is the greenest option. Retykle aims to helps parents make a positive choice for the environment, through an easy platform to buy and sell timeless quality clothes, shoes and accessories that can be loved again and again.
I do believe that everyone wants to live a greener life but not everyone wants to go the extra mile involved in doing so. The goal of Retykle and other like-minded companies is to make the choice as easy as possible.
Sarah Garner, Retykle FounderBefore you take your child's used clothes to the charity bin, consider what could be resold. Retykle makes it easy to consign your used children's clothing with free and convenient pick ups from your home. Read our ABC of selling to see how easy it is!
You will receive a 50% commission on all items sold which you can choose to receive as cash (bank transfer) or Retykle will make it even easier to support charities by facilitating earnings donations directly to your charity of choice! You can also opt to earn your commission in Tyke Points (55%) to put towards future purchases with Retykle.
Retykle makes buying and re-selling great quality baby and kid’s clothing as convenient and as stylish as buying new.
Shop from over 1000+ of the best children's brands from across the globe in new with tags to gently used condition all at incredible discounts.
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