Did you know that there are retailers out there that are just waiting to reward you for taking an eco-friendly approach to updating your wardrobe?
And that’s as if planet-related reasons weren’t enough of a motivator. The truth is, clothing (like food) is a major source of waste. According to EPA estimates, in 2015, only 14.2 percent of discarded clothing and footwear was recycled. A whopping 8.2 million tons ended up in landfills, where it added to a greenhouse gas-producing pile-up.
To avoid tossing the shirts you’ve gotten sick of, you can always head to the trusty Salvation Army (or a local shelter or mission in your area).
RELATED: Tara Button’s Buy-It-Once Approach to Mindful Living (and Eating)
These stores, below, provide an additional option: Bring in your old clothes and they retailers will take care of doing something great with them—while also giving you props (in the form of awesome discounts) for flexing your sustainability muscle.
(Featured Photo: Shutterstock)
3 Stores That Reward You For Clothing Donation
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H&M and & Other Stories
H&M and its upscale sister store, & Other Stories, both allow you to drop of bags of used clothing at any store. Even socks and old towels are okay. The company works with a recycling partner that then sorts donations into clothing that can be sold or donated second-hand and pieces that have reached the end of their wearable life but can be repurposed into insulation material for things like “geofleece, carpet underlay, and rear shelves in cars, stuffed toys, shoe insoles, among many, many other things.”
Reward: For each bag you drop off, you’ll get a voucher for 15 percent at H&M or 10 percent off at & Other stories.
(Photo: & Other Stories)
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Madewell
Madewell partners with a program called Blue Jeans Go Green. Drop off any old pairs (from any brand) that have gone out of style (or that have reached that point where the holes no longer look cool, they just look like holes), and they’ll be turned into housing insulation for organizations like Habitat for Humanity. Bonus: Better insulation leads to more efficient energy use in those houses.
Reward: For each pair donated, you get $20 off a new Madewell pair. Insider tip: the vouchers do expire, but we’ve experienced them honoring them after the expiration date, so give it a shot before tossing an old one.
(Photo: Madewell)
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The North Face
Got a pair of worn sneakers you really want to get out of the house? The North Face accepts both used clothing and footwear via its Clothes the Loop program and passes it on to a non-profit partner, Soles4Souls. The organization then uses shoes and clothing to address need around the world, via distribution in impoverished communities, disaster relief, and more.
Reward: $10 of your next purchase of $100 or more.
(Photo: The North Face)
