Thrifting has become all the rage lately among Bryant students, with good reason, as there are many benefits to buying clothes and other items second hand. Some like cheaper prices and sustainability.
I personally am an avid thrifter; I’ve been visiting thrift stores since the 8th grade and gradually building up my closet with each visit. Thrifting allows people like me a chance to dress to their tastes without breaking the bank or the environment.
Short trips to Goodwill or the local Civitan calm my mind and save my wallet. Being able to browse through a charity shop every now and then has enabled me to develop my own individual style and allows me to express myself. I’ve acquired many memorable things in my thrifting journey such as books, art, tea cups, cds and records, but the most common thing I thrift is clothes. I am able to find unique and interesting pieces in charity shops rather than trendy items that will go out of fashion in a month.
Bryant High School’s student body has quite a few avid thrifters. According to a survey conducted through English classes, 118 out of 239 students who filled out the survey said yes to having thrifted, with 60 of those students stating that they thrift several times a month.
The best way to be sustainable is to buy clothing that will be worn and loved more than once. My rule for myself when thrifting is to put my finds back on the rack before I check out and try to remember what all I have. If I can’t remember something then I don’t need it. This process, I feel, prevents me from over buying or buying things that I don’t need.
Sizing can be challenging with thrifting; oftentimes stores aren’t organized by size and some sizes aren’t always available. Which is why buying essentials from retail stores is perfectly acceptable, so long as one isn’t over consuming.
That being said, thrifting pieces from these companies, if you wish to, is perfectly acceptable. Buying an item of clothing from a charity shop does not contribute to fast fashion brands, and depending on where you thrift, the money you spend could even help others in need. Multiple resale stores are run by charities or nonprofits like The Civitan, the Habitat for Humanity store, or even Good Will.
Thrifting is the reason I’ve been able to expand my fashion sense and express myself, like many other people my age. It has become an outlet for me to express myself while still holding true to my values. Sustainability and fashion don’t have to come at a hefty price.
Not only is thrifting a way to quickly build up a reliable wardrobe, it’s also a way to keep it sustainable. The fashion industry is riddled with overpriced and overproduced garments that have a limited life time.
The rise of fast fashion has led to a ridiculous amount of textile waste that grows with every passing year. Resale shops and thrift stores take in donations instead of manufacturing their clothes, saving garments from landfills. Buying from a thrift store means giving an article of clothing a new life.
Inflation and fast fashion have ruined the clothing market, as stores are filled with cheap, poorly made items for terrible prices.
The rise of said fast fashion brands has begun to infiltrate thrift stores. Almost every time I go to the thrift store I find pieces from Shein, Cider, Fashion Nova and H&M. These items of clothing were most likely worn a minimal amount of times before they were donated.
Fast fashion is extremely problematic, not only because of its ecological ramifications for the earth, (with around 17 million tons of textile waste produced in the U.S. alone ) but also because of the immoral way that the garments are made.(theroundup.org)
Up to 60% of garment workers are under the age of 18, and are being exploited by fast fashion companies. (the guardian.com) When you buy from big corporations like Shein, you enable those companies to continue exploiting their workers.
I feel that thrifting is the best option for sourcing clothes sustainably, as it’s part of the clothing cycle. The clothing cycle is the life of an item of clothing, most clothing starts out being sold in retail stores. Buying clothes first hand isn’t the most horrible thing a person can do, in fact sometimes it’s necessary.
The rest of the clothing cycle takes place after the item of clothing is no longer wanted by the consumer. When an item of clothing is no longer needed there are several options for what to do with it. You can donate unwanted clothing to a thrift store where it can be repurchased and loved by someone else, you can upcycle the piece of clothing into another item (like a t-shirt quilt) or you can throw it away ending the clothing cycle.
Purchasing pre owned items of clothing helps prevent them from ending up in landfills. 92 million tons of textile waste is produced every year by the garment industry. (Theroundup.org)
Buying from donation based resale stores instead of fast fashion brands reduces the revenue of the corporations responsible for massive textile waste, while also preventing donated clothes from ending up in landfills. Over consumption is a big factor in the world of fast fashion; Quickly shifting styles and trends leads to people over buying textile productions and producing more waste than they otherwise would.
Overall there are many good reasons to thrift, whether it’s to keep clothes out of a landfill, or build up your wardrobe without breaking the bank, buying clothes second hand is always a good option. I personally would recommend thrifting for everyone. The benefits are great for your closet and for the world.
