What Happens To Clothes When You Donate Them?

What Happens To Clothes When You Donate Them?

Ever wondered about the fate of your unwanted clothes? With the rising demand for budget-friendly clothing, the inclination to purchase more while retaining less is on the rise.

As fast fashion retailers gain popularity, people are tempted to buy low-price, and often low-quality clothing driven by the desire to stay abreast of fashion trends. However, this often leads to a high turnover for clothes, with many garments either being discarded or donated to charity clothing stores. This is especially the case for baby and kids' clothes, as children quickly grow out of their clothes. 

However, when clothes are donated, only a fraction finds its way back onto the shelves of the donating store. A significant portion is either shipped to other countries or ends up in landfills.

In this post, we'll explore the journey of your donated clothes and discuss ways you can contribute to the reduction of textile waste in the future.

Donating your clothes to charity shops

It is likely that we have all donated clothes to charity shops in the past, and may well plan to in the future. Whether we are donating kids’ clothes or our own clothes because they no longer fit, or we just want a change, donating used clothing to be re-sold and re-worn seems like the eco-friendly thing to do. However, what exactly happens to our clothes when we donate them? 

Due to the effect of fast-fashion retailers and consumer behaviour the amount of clothes donated is too much for UK charity shops to cope with. Although a portion of donated clothes make it to the shelves, the reality is that many are sold to foreign countries and shipped abroad.

According to a 2019 report from the Environmental Audit Committee, only as little as 30 percent of donations are resold in second-hand stores in the UK, with many items unsuitable to be sold. 

Of those items that are unsuitable due to being too worn, or too damaged to sell they turn into recycled textiles or are sold to the rag trade. However, the largest percentage of unwanted garments, as much as 70% of reused clothing, is sold to overseas garment trade, as discussed in this report from the BBC.

The garment trade abroad 

Clothes that are sold to the garment trade are shipped abroad to locations such as Africa, Pakistan, and Eastern Europe. Here your clothes are sold in markets, and where they end up depends on the type of garment. 

Research conducted by Dr Andrew Brooks, the author of Clothing Poverty, found that although donated clothing is being resold, it is to the detriment of the textile industries of developing countries. Additionally, due to the fast-paced nature of the garment trade, clothes are sold in bulk to traders and sadly not all the clothing is resold, with many garments going to landfills in Africa instead of the UK. 

What can we do to avoid garment waste?

There are many things we as consumers can do to help avoid contributing to garment waste. Here are a few great options: 

New clothing

  • Reduce the amount you buy and avoid mass-produced cheap clothing. 
  • Buy quality items that are made with high-quality materials so they last longer.
  • Take care of your clothes and follow the laundry instructions to maximise their wear, or get them repaired if necessary.
  • Buy second-hand clothes over new items. 
  • Rent clothing that you need to replace quickly such as children's clothing. Here at Borro, we have a brilliant selection of high-quality children’s clothing you can rent hassle-free.  

Unwanted clothing: 

  • Donate unwanted clothes to local homeless shelters and unwanted baby clothes to children's clothing banks. 
  • Re-sell your clothes locally or on clothing resale sites such as eBay and Vinted, which are especially great for selling second-hand kids clothes. 

With some small adjustments to your buying habits and by choosing alternative ways to consume fashion, such as renting or buying second-hand, you can greatly help reduce the amount of waste generated by the clothing industry. 

 

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Receive Credit For Your Unwanted Clothes

Tired of the endless cycle of kids outgrowing their clothes and wondering what to do with them? Our Sort Out Sack is your easy way to clear space and earn credit!

Receive £5 Borro credit guaranteed for every full bag we receive. PLUS £5 Borro credit for every organic item in excellent condition

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Questions?

Why Borro clothes?

Renting means less waste, more wardrobe flexibility and no more piles of outgrown clothes. It’s a smarter, more sustainable way to dress your little ones.

With Borro, you get high-quality kidswear without the commitment, just what you need, when you need it. Helping you save time, save money, and save the planet.

What about stains?

Don't panic! Let us worry about the stains. Stain insurance is included. Obviously it's best to prevent stains if you can, or treat them as soon as possible. But we will never charge you.

If the garment can't be saved, it will be upcycled or recycled. Nothing ever goes to landfill, and we'll never charge you.

Subscription & exchanges

Subscription

All the clothes are individually priced and there's no minimum amount or set subscription - we're flexible!

Rent as many/few things as you like and you'll see at checkout what your monthly subscription will be. (If you want us to pick out a coordinated bundle of 10 items for you, it's £29/month).

Exchanges

We know little ones grow as fast as the weather changes! You don't need to return your previous order to order new clothes, so simply send back items whenever you no longer have a need for them, and add any new items to your subscription, by adding them to your basket and checking out.

Delivery & returns

Delivery

Your order will be packed and dispatched the next working day. Delivery takes 2-3 working days.

Returns

Pop them inside the bag/box they came in, attach the free pre-paid returns label, then drop off at your nearest Evri ParcelShop.

We only include one pre-paid returns label per order, so if you choose to send just some of an order back and the rest later, you will need to pay for the postage of the second return. 

Once we've received your items we will amend your subscription so you only pay for what you've got.

We recommend returning items 4-5 days before your subscription renews in order to allow enough time for delivery and processing to avoid your next monthly payment going out. If you're a few days late, you can always cancel online (use the link in the order confirmation email). As long as we receive the clothes within the next few days, that's fine.

Sustainability

At Borro we maximise the use of each item of clothing by providing a service that ensures it's well maintained, repaired and enjoyed by as many families as possible.

So if a garment is used by 6 different users, the global warming potential is 49% less, with a CO2e (kg) per user of 1.18, instead of 2.29.

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