ANZ-based fashion and lifestyle platform THE ICONIC has partnered with ISB Top 50 small business winner RCYCL, which facilitates a clothing donation and recycling service, in an initiative that aims to give new life to unwanted clothing.
Under the initiative, customers can either donate pre-loved clothes directly to Salvos Stores or send their unwearable clothes to be recycled, by simply purchasing a satchel from THE ICONIC. Meanwhile, RCYCL will not only help customers reduce their personal textile waste footprint but also ease the pressure and cost from charities like Salvos Stores, by better managing unsellable or unwearable items that would otherwise incur significant sorting and landfill costs.
Whilst customers will pay a small amount for the service to cover shipping, it will go to the support for Salvos Stores while ensuring that garments are being mindfully donated or recycled at their end-of-life.
Recent data suggests that each year, 200,000 tonnes of clothing are sent to landfill in Australia due to a lack of systematic collection of unwearable items and limited recycling capacity. A further 190,000 tonnes of clothing are donated to charities, however, some of this is unwearable.
“We are committed to advancing sustainability and circularity through innovative solutions,” Gayle Burchell, Chief Commercial and Sustainability Officer at THE ICONIC, said. “ We are excited to provide Australians with a practical and mindful way to manage clothing waste that ensures their garments are either responsibly recycled or donated effectively.”
Belinda Paul, Founder of RCYCL said, “Allowing the everyday consumer the ability to manage their wardrobe cleanouts is so important in this retail landscape. We are all looking for something to do to help the environment, to feel empowered by our own actions but most of us do not know where to start. By THE ICONIC supporting this action, as a community, we will be able to make the biggest impact possible – starting at home. RCYCL is looking to make our wardrobe clean outs habitual rather than a chore.”
