Sustainable clothing brand BAM (bamboo clothing) has partnered with the Sharewear Clothing Scheme. A similar partnership last year was such a success that BAM is hoping customers will again back the initiative to end clothes poverty.
When you buy from BAM, you will be able to request a postage-paid Sharewear recycling bag. This can then be filled with up to 5kg of good condition clothing (not necessarily activewear) for the charity to send on to those in need.
It also provides a sustainable and simple solution to the “buy, wear, replace” cycle that adds to the 73% of clothing currently ending up in landfill or incinerated (EMF Make Fashion Circular Report). BAM wants to get this to zero and working with the charity is just one way in which the company is helping to extend the lifecycle of its activewear.
Pete Durant, BAM Marketing Director, said: “BAM has been built on the concept of loving the planet and leaving no trace.
“We know that our customers share these values, but we were still blown away by the level of engagement last year.”
For those who love clothes but who are also aware of the issues surrounding clothing waste, this initiative enables BAM customers to give their existing activewear a new lease of life.
Pete added: “Importantly, we also want to make sure as many people as possible can get out and enjoy exploring the world around them, which means having appropriate clothing. Working with Sharewear ticks all the boxes.”
Sharewear’s figures show that a total of 26,000 people were supported by the charity in 2021 in the East Midlands, Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, South Wales and North London.
Louise Cooke, founder of Sharewear Clothing Scheme said: “During 2021, the need for our service increased dramatically, with us supporting 50% more people than the year before. There’s no doubt that BAM customer donations helped us to cope with this demand by increasing our stock levels.
“This partnership supported countless people to access free activity at the toughest time in their life, including those who had lost their job as a result of the pandemic.
Louise revealed the charity was delighted by the response from BAM customers, who not only donated pre-loved activewear but in some cases also bought an extra pair of what they had ordered for themselves and then sent it to the charity using the prepaid bag.
“Perhaps most important of all though,” concluded Louise, “is the fact that a respected sustainable brand such as BAM going into partnership with us has inspired other brands to reach out to us and confirmed our reputation in the UK as the place where clothing poverty meets clothing waste.”