With an estimated £140m worth of clothing going to landfill in the UK each year*, supermarket Asda is helping to find new homes for unwanted clothes with a trial of an in-store ‘Re-Loved’ charity clothing shop.
For 4 weeks from 2nd September, the ‘Re-Loved’ pop-up shop in Asda’s Milton Keynes store will feature donated second-hand clothes from a number of different brands, as the retailer looks at ways to encourage customers to reuse, repurpose or recycle their unwanted clothes.
The move is part of a drive by George, Asda’s fashion brand, to improve the environmental impact of its clothes and operations, following the launch of its new sustainability strategy and first range of recycled polyester clothing in the spring.
It already has a zero-tolerance policy towards incineration of clothing waste and its surplus products are donated to be repurposed or recycled by a number of different charities. It also has clothing recycling points for customers at almost 500 stores.
Melanie Wilson, Senior Director for Sustainable Sourcing at George, said: “As a country, we throw away far too many clothes. At George, we’re committed to doing the right thing by our customers and the planet by improving the sustainability of our products, making sure they are built to last - including our 100 day satisfaction guarantee - and ensuring that any surplus stock we have is repurposed or recycled.
“By trialling our Re-Loved pop-up shop, we hope to help create another route for unwanted clothes to find a new home and encourage people to think again about throwing away that top or those jeans they no longer love.”
All proceeds from the shop will go to Asda’s Tickled Pink campaign, which supports Breast Cancer Care and Breast Cancer Now. To date, the Tickled Pink partnership has raised over £64 million for vital breast cancer research and support.
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*WRAP figures: http://www.wrap.org.uk/content/clothing-waste-prevention
Notes for editors
- Re-Loved: The Pre-Loved Fashion Pop-Up Shop will be at Asda Milton Keynes for four weeks from Monday 2nd September. It will be open from 10am-7pm on Monday to Saturday and 10am-4pm on Sundays.
- George is the UK’s second largest fashion retailer by volume in the UK.
- George has committed to make all its products with recycled or sustainable polyester, cotton, viscose by 2025, as well as increasing transparency in its supply chain. More information on its sustainability strategy can be found here: https://corporate.asda.com/newsroom/2019/03/25/george-at-asda-to-sell-products-made-from-recycled-plastic-bottles-and-clothing-as-part-of-new-sustainability-pledge
About Tickled Pink
Asda founded Tickled Pink in 1996 to raise awareness and funding for the treatment of breast cancer in the UK. The Tickled Pink campaign supports Breast Cancer Care and Breast Cancer Now, and to date the partnership has raised over £64 million for vital breast cancer research and support.
About Breast Cancer Care and Breast Cancer Now
Breast Cancer Care and Breast Cancer Now have merged to create one charity for everyone affected by breast cancer – united by the shared ambition that, by 2050, everyone who develops breast cancer will live, and be supported to live well.