The hype around used clothes – Statement

Let’s be honest. Buying used clothes can be a nightmare. Trawl through meters of clothes from the 80s and 90s in a beautiful combination with the coolest from H&M and Zara. Hours can go by in the tug of war for that sweater you neither looked for nor really needed, but which was a “bargain”. Or? Buying second-hand clothes is being hyped somewhat violently at the moment. Buy used! Remove the VAT! Think environment! But is it really that simple? Trawling through large quantities of used clothes in the hope of finding the gold is not equally appropriate for everyone. Also, not everyone is lucky enough to be able to put on anything and look like a million bucks. Or who has the talent to be able to sew a garment and make it fit. SECOND-HAND STORES: For many people, finding the right garment is a bit overwhelming. Photo: Shutterstock Nevertheless, buying used clothes is being sold as the very solution to clothes as an environmental and climate problem, if we are to believe the amount of newspaper coverage and how much it is talked about on social media. I’m not against buying used – on the contrary, but it’s not the whole solution. The problem with clothes is not just about what we throw away. It is probably so much about what enters the ecosystem – i.e. what is produced from clothes. Those who contribute the most in the number of new garments are ultra and fast fashion players such as Shein, H&M, Zara, Primark and Temu. They spew out huge quantities of new and cheap clothes that we happily buy. A short time later, we “donate” them on to a charity, with a clear conscience. Every year, 30,000 tonnes of used clothes are collected for charities and recycling operators, and the same amount is thrown in the residual waste. Of the collected clothes in Norway, only 3 percent are sold in second-hand shops. The rest is sent out of the country, and much ends up in landfills in poor countries. SØPPELBERG: Ton after ton of discarded fashion clothes from the West ends up in poorer countries. The picture is from the Atacama desert in Chile. Photo: Arnt Stefansen / news The problem is that there is no one on the other end who can make use of all the clothes we send out. Especially cheap clothes of poor quality. Just look at the amounts of clothing in the Atacama desert, as one of many examples. It’s all well and good to buy second-hand, but when the bulk of new clothes that come on the market, and secondly the second-hand market, are so incredibly bad that no one wants them, we have to change the type of clothing we produce. For me, the answer is obvious: We must produce and buy clothes of good quality, in sustainable quantities. Since good quality clothes hold up better over time, they will most likely have a value even after many years of use. We will also not be able to consume as many garments on the same budget as now, because a quality garment that is ethically made costs more. So how do we find good quality new clothes? Something simple everyone can relate to is price. Cheap fast fashion clothing is highly unlikely to be of high quality. Should some garments still be, the danger that they were produced under highly questionable conditions is too great for them to taste good. All garments in this segment should never have been produced considering the use of resources, environmental pollution and the conditions of the people who make them. This does not mean that you should buy the most famous luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton, Dior and Balenciaga. Then you pay an unnecessary amount just for the name. In addition, the quality can even decrease, if noble fibers are spun so thin that the garment is almost transparent. FRENCH LUXURY: Model Baptiste Giabiconi during Dior’s 2025 spring/summer collection show during Paris Fashion Week in June. Photo: AFP Find the intersection between price and quality. Therein lies the magic. How to spot quality? Here are some simple tips in the right direction: Thicker fabrics have more wear and tear before getting holes. Woven tightly. If the fabric is also tightly woven, it holds even better. Tight stitches on shirts, blouses and garments in the same type of fabric are signs of good quality. Avoid stretch, especially in trousers. The garments do not hold their shape and quickly look sagging. Then you steer clear of a stylistic fade at the same time. Avoid polyester, acrylic, polyamide and nylon in pure or mixed form in garments larger than socks, unless it is a raincoat. This is plastic. Plastic is extremely durable, but plastic in clothing is harmful both to you and the environment. The best thing would have been for there to be an end to the production of the cheapest and worst clothes. LOOK AT THE FABRIC: Look at the thickness of the fabric when buying jeans. Here, the seam does not have to be as tight. Photo: Andreas Feet LOOK AT THE STITCHES: Lighter fabrics should have tighter stitches. It takes longer to sew, and is a sign that the garment is more elaborate. Photo: Andreas Feet French politicians have proposed a fee of ten euros per garment for all fast fashion players, to make something cheap more expensive and thus less attractive. A more direct approach, with an almost immediate effect, is for us as consumers to stop buying so many cheap, poor quality clothes. Rather, buy fewer and better ones. Where there is no demand, there is no supply. The use of energy and natural resources, as well as emissions during production and shipping, will be drastically reduced for each garment that is not produced. In addition, a manageable amount of good quality clothing will reach the second-hand market, and have a real chance of finding a new owner and having a long life. If we are to transform the clothing industry and make it sustainable, we must reduce volume, increase quality and produce ethically. And not least, we have to make sure that the clothes we buy last a long time – that is perhaps more important than buying second-hand. Published 15.09.2024, at 11.20



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