Vouchers for unloved clothes: major retailers join the second-hand fashion revolution

Article published in Le Figaro 

Do you have old clothes you no longer wear? Would you like to free up space in your wardrobe without throwing them away? A new initiative is bringing together retail rivals to offer a solution that’s good for both the planet and the pocket. Many French outlets, from hypermarkets to fashion brands, are now accepting second-hand clothes to be sorted and put back on sale.

Retail rivals embracing circularity

The first store to launch the new initiative was Auchan. “We started with five shops in February 2020,” says David Decovemacker, Auchan director of partnerships. In September of the same year, the brand decided to extend the project to all its hypermarket branches. Today, 115 shops offer the service, handing an EUR 5 voucher to customers in exchange for a minimum of 10 items of clothing. “We act as a collection point,” Decovemacker continues, “another company is responsible for collecting and sorting the clothes sent by customers.” For now, only hypermarket branches are involved, but, as the scheme evolves, it could soon be extended to smaller shops.

Multinational giant Carrefour is also embracing the opportunity to advance the circular economy, with customers attracted by both the environmental and financial benefits of the scheme. “It’s our role, as a major retailer, to make it more democratic,” says Bertrand Swiderski, the group’s sustainable development director. Currently, explains Frédéric Brossard, the brand’s non-food marketing director, “the collection system is in place in 130 Carrefour shops, and customers say they are very happy with the initiative.”

Meanwhile, earlier this year, retailers co-operative Système U expanded the scheme from an initial ten shops to 150 outlets on a trial basis.

Read also: The CLIC^® Chronicles: 10 ways to build a circular economy and the companies leading the way

Second-hand corner

Many of those committed to the project have gone further than acting merely as collection points. Most have also set up “second-hand corners”, store space dedicated to the sale of used items, where customers can buy clothes at low prices. All participating Auchan hypermarkets have these dedicated spaces – “The interest for us is to participate in the entire cycle, from collection to resale,” says David Decovemacker. Carrefour also has second-hand corners in 27 outlets, which include used clothes from brands such as Kiabi, H&M and Zara. “We offer articles for women, men and children, all brands combined,” says Frédéric Brossard.

Second-hand clothing is attracting big-name fashion brands as well. “We’ve believed in it from the start,” says Xavier Prudhomme, general manager of the Bonobo brand. “With Vinted, people have become aware that their clothes have a value. And they are right.” Bonobo has been enabling its customers to return their old clothes since last year – now all ready-to-wear brands of the Beaumanoir Group (Cache-Cache, Bréal, Caroll, Morgan, and more) have followed suit.

Customers receive vouchers of EUR 1 for each item, up to a limit of EUR 15 per visit. “It’s not to limit people, it’s just to avoid people bringing in wheelbarrows of clothes,” says Xavier Prudhomme with amusement. Bonobo is now recovering around 150,000 items per month – “Exceptional results,” says Prudhomme. The vouchers scheme, which had already been in operation at H&M since 2013, is now also offered by Kiabi and Promod.