Why we should all support Second Hand September!

Why we should all support Second Hand September!

As the season changes and the kids go back to school you may start thinking about your wardrobe and what you'll be wearing this Autumn/Winter. You may even want to buy some new clothes to update and refresh what you already own.

This is when we'd ask you to support Oxfam’s Second Hand September campaign, which challenges you to buy only second-hand fashion for the 30 days in September.

As a preloved business we already understand the impact the fashion industry has on our planet but as we lurch from one economic challenge to another it's now more relevant than ever to consider your spend and whether a new item of clothing is necessary.

That's why this month our window is a departure from our normal display. We're hoping our 'Stack of landfill' window, which leads to a clever interactive toolcreated for kids clothing company five of us, will highlight how our throw away fashion culture is out of hand and needs to be addressed urgently.


Willow & Eve encourages buying 'New to you' ; preloved clothing still in great condition and often new with tags, that are still fashionable and on trend or replace style staples in your wardrobe. 

We want our customers to embrace slow fashion, not fast fashion, and to think beyond the thrill of buying new.
Where do those items come from? Where do they go when they are no longer worn? How were they produced and how much pollution was generated? Who made them and in what conditions?

By making more informed buying decisions we can slow down an industry that accounts for up to 10% of global carbon dioxide output, according to a recent article in Bloomberg UK.  


We're not saying never buy new but asking you to be more thoughtful about your fashion purchases and buy second hand or preloved if you can. And the slow fashion movement is becoming more mainstream. It was refreshing to see the latest season of Love Island promoting eBay, a shift from previous seasons which heavily promoted fast fashion brands.

We know that Willow & Eve is a small business and that we won't be able to change the industry overnight but we're definitely trying and as our customers keep coming back to us we know we're doing the right thing.

And because we curate our stock carefully our customers feel confident in what they buy and prolong the lifespan of a garment that may have otherwise ended up in landfill. So support this months Second Hand September challenge and you can make a difference to!