For the past couple of years, I’ve been encouraging ethical consumption and slow fashion. However, despite our best efforts it’s easy to accumulate lots of clothing without meaning to. A good wardrobe clear out is necessary every so often. I recently saw some Instagram ads for a clothes re-selling service called Thrift+. I thought I’d try it and share my experience in a Thrift+ review.
Back when I used to buy a lot of fast fashion, I used to have a couple of wardrobe clearouts a year. I dislike clutter and having too many things so this helped me keep my wardrobe (and mind) streamlined. Back then, I would donate my unwanted clothes to charity. I’ve since read a couple of articles about the lifestyle and impact of sending second-hand clothes abroad. This article estimates that only 10-130% of donated clothing is resold in the UK, with the majority being sold overseas. The often stunts local industry and maintains reliance on the west. There is a lot to unpack and I’m still researching this issue fully.
I was searching for a good alternative to charity shops which offered a level of transparency and stumbled upon Thrift+. It seemed like a good option and helps to support various charities. Here’s everything you need to know about their service:
What is Thift+?
Thrift+ is a new service which aims to elevate charity shopping and donation. To donate, you simply send your unwanted goods to them and they do the rest. They sort, photograph, write descriptions and list your pieces on their site. To shop, just visit their e-commerce site where you can browse donations by category and also search. It looks the same as any other retail site.
The first £5 of each sale covers their fees and the rest is split between the donator’s chosen charity chosen and the person who donated the clothing, if they choose to receive credit for the Thrift+ store.
So, how do you donate clothing to Thrift+?
You simply go onto the site and order the number of bags you think you’ll need. The donation bags arrive within a week or so, giving you enough time to sift through your wardrobe for your donations. Once you’ve filled up the bags, just affix the returns label and stop them off at your nearest collection point – mine was about five minutes walk from my flat so it couldn’t be more convenient.
Once your goods have been received, the Thrift+ team sort through your clothes, photograph them and put them on the website for sale. The majority of the proceeds go towards your chosen charity – I picked a cancer charity as it’s a cause very close to my heart. Read on for my full Thrift+ review. , a
My Thrift+ review
I found the website to be clear and straight-forward. It was easy to set up an account and order donation bags. I wasn’t sure how many to order so I went for 3. I’m sure I have enough items of clothing but if not I thought it’d be handy to keep the bag for my next clear out.
The bags arrived in about 10 days. In this time, I pulled out a good selection of clothing from my wardrobe, a mixture of high street, premium and designer pieces. In each donation bag, there’s a little postcard where you add notes to help the Thrift+ team when they write the descriptions and price up your pieces. I found this quite time consuming but as I had some new clothes or special edition pieces, it felt helpful to note this down.
The collection point was super close to my flat, much closer than my local charity shop, so it was super handy. I didn’t receive any notifications to say my donation had arrived. The first confirmation I had is when I was browsing the site and realised I had some pieces for sale!
I also found that the team didn’t always price items well, even with notes for guidance. For example, I donated a brand new Issa skirt which still had the tags on. It was priced at £10 which is incredibly low for a designer piece. By contrast, a Nasty Gal skirt which was not new with tags was priced at £6. I understand that pieces will be priced competitively and will be a fraction of the original retail price, however, it also feels like a missed opportunity to earn
I was shocked at the pricing of a couple of pieces and felt like more money could have been raised for charity. The admin fees for each piece are £5 and when you factor in the low prices, you don’t end up raising too much money for charity. In my opinion, these fees need to be reviewed.
Would I recommend Thrift+?
The big question: would I recommend Thrift+? Yes, I would. The convenience is a big plus point, it couldn’t be easier to donate to charity. The only criticism I have is around the pricing and fees. There’s a balance between pricing items competitively to make them accessible and raising a decent amount of money for charity. It’s still think it’s a great service. I have ordered some more donation bags for a more thorough lockdown clear out. I hope you found my Thrift+ review useful.
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