Advocates for sustainability in the fashion industry GFX and West London Waste Authority (WLWA) have joined forces to host a London clothes swap alongside a number of pop-up talks, to raise awareness of one of the most polluting industries in the world – textiles.
If everyone wore their clothes more, we could reduce carbon, water and waste footprints by 20-30%. To put things into perspective – most people wear their clothing for an average of 7 days, when the average should be three years. Through this swap, UK households can save up to £1000, the value of 1/3 of the clothes in their closets that they don’t wear, swapping these unwanted items for clothes they will actually wear – saving them money, while also making an impactful change on the world.
10:00 - 12:00 - Clothes Drop Off
The day will begin with individuals dropping off up-to 5 items of clothing at the V&A clothes swap. Participants will be given one token per item given, to be used later at the clothes swap. Clothing will be evaluated by the guidelines stated below, and only eligible towards the clothes swap if they are deemed acceptable.
12:00 - 13:30 – Talks + Swap
Come and listen to some of the biggest and most influential leaders in sustainability including: Fashion Revolution, C&A Foundation, GFX, Ellen MacArthur Foundation, WLWA, Common Objective, Fashion 4 Change, Avery Dennison, Traid, Mindrheo...
Please note: admission to the swap for general public who have attended talks will be from 14:30.
15:00 - 17:15 – Swap
Clothes that have been accepted for the swap will be set up nicely for participants to browse, try on and pick out what clothing they want to give a second life. There will be stock pieces from Arcadia brands, a number of pieces that have been repurposed by Graduate Fashion week, as well as one bespoke piece created by Felder+ Felder, to be won by a lucky participant.