How to shop second hand: part 1
- Jan 1, 2018
- 3 min read
While shopping from ethical brands is a great first move towards shopping more sustainably, buying second hand is perhaps an even more angelic choice. But second hand shopping – and that’s not even to mention ‘vintage’ shopping – can be a bit of a nightmare. You never know what you’re gonna get, and it can all be a bit demoralising.
But if you know where to look and have a little patience, it can be pretty damn good for your wardrobe, your wallet and the planet (wahey!). Moving towards a circular clothes economy reacts against fast fashion, reduces waste, and often allows you to donate to a good cause if you’re shopping at a charity shop. What’s more, you might find something a little more unique than the coat that everyone has seen in the window of Topshop and Zara.
There are some second hand shops that – that don’t venture into the style and eye watering prices of vintage – that you can be a little more certain you’ll come away with a smile on your face from. Here are 4 options to get started, and I'll be adding more as I find them...
What’s the best thing about Depop you ask? Simple: you can browse an endless supply of well-priced garms from the comfort of your own bed (or secretly from work, or the train, or wherever else you can get on da wifi or data if unlike me you don't have to treat your data supply like gold dust).
Depop is a brilliant place both to buy and sell clothes, that has a very good search tool and stocks from individuals as well as boutiques. You can also follow peoples’ feeds if you find someone with a style you love and who looks your size. They have a really easy to use in-app messaging system, and you can easily favourite things to have a look at later.
My most recent Depop purchases have been a second hand pair of American Apparel leggings in unworn condition for £15, and the jazziest of jazzy festive jumpers (that’s also super warm) for a cool £10. Take a lookie and you might likie.
Traid is on a mission to reduce clothes waste and give the people fabulous second-hand style, donating proceeds to global projects. They provide a clothes pick-up service to make it easy for people to donate their pre-loved clothes, and have stores that put front and centre their best finds and let you browse their other treasures.
They are dedicated to not only reducing clothes waste (they divert 3000 tonnes of clothes from landfill a year) but also to educating people about the negative impacts of fast fashion. They use the proceeds from the stores to support global projects dedicated to improving conditions and working practices in the textile industry.
Even if you don’t come across the exact item you’re looking for in one of their stores, you’re bound to enjoy sifting through their hand-selected stock and finding out about this great charity.
You can find Traid shops dotted across London, and they pick up clothes from across the UK using their transport network.
If you’ve ever been to the Oxfam on Chiswick High Street, you might have noticed it’s a little fancy. Oxfam receive a huge amount of clothing stock every year, and through their specially-designed boutiques, they place the most special and interesting finds together in one shop so you can be sure of a completely different Oxfam experience.
Good for dresses, workwear and coats, you can find a Oxfam Boutiques in London, Durham, Cardiff & Windsor.
Mary Portas – UK retail expert and ‘Queen of Shops’ - is the woman behind Save the Children’s high-end second hand outlets – and you can tell. Each one feels less like a charity shop and more like an artsy boutique and are filled with only the best of donations.
In Mary’s own words, "I wanted to create a place for people to collaborate, share, and commune with energy, kindness and love. I wanted to create a space for fellow feeling and mindfulness to thrive. I wanted us to think about how we live and how we give back." Sounds pretty good to me.
Comments