Marks & Spencer is making recycling clothes easier by extending its Shwopping campaign into the workplace.
The Shwopping initiative was launched in April in a bid to put an end to the one billion items of clothing currently ending up in landfill every year. Under the scheme, the public can give an old, unwanted item of clothing back every time they buy something new. Each item donated is re-sold, re-used or recycled by M&S' Shwopping partner, Oxfam.
From next year the campaign will be extended into UK workplaces through a dedicated service that will see Shwop Drops - clothes recycling boxes – placed in offices up and down the country for a one day eco drive. M&S will deliver the Shwop Drops and provide marketing materials such as banners and notices. Oxfam will collect the clothing and re-sell, re-use or recycle it, raising crucial funds for its worldwide poverty alleviation work. Oxfam will also accept old uniforms, corporate workwear and any other textiles. Every employee who recycles will receive an M&S money off voucher.
The free service is open to any interested business.
Adam Elman, Head of Plan A delivery at M&S, said: "We're passionate about giving used clothes a future. One man's old shirt is another's retro classic and we can even transform tatty clothing into new products, such as mattress or car seat fillings. There's no excuse for sending textiles to landfill and that's why we're doing everything we can to make it easy for people to recycle with Oxfam”.
He added: "We've spoken at length with our customers - on Facebook, in focus groups and day-to-day in stores - and they want us to make shwopping as easy as possible, and that's why we're bringing it to offices and workplaces. For companies, it a great way to engage with employees and improve your sustainability credentials."
To date, over two million items of used or unwanted pieces of clothing have been donated in M&S and Oxfam stores across the UK through the Shwopping inititative.
Any interested companies should contact plana@marks-and-spencer.com . For more information.