Oxfam raises £1.8 million in first year of M&S Clothes Exchange
Howard Lake | 30 January 2009 | News
The Marks & Spencer and Oxfam Clothes Exchange has raised over £1.8 million for the charity in its first year, and saved nearly three million garments weighing 1,400 tonnes from going to landfill.
The partnership between the UK’s biggest clothing retailer and the country’s biggest charity shop network was the first initiative on the high street to reward shoppers for recycling clothing.
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Consumers who bring back M&S clothing to Oxfam shops through the exchange receive a £5 M&S voucher redeemable when they spend £35 or more on clothing, home or beauty products at M&S. In the Republic of Ireland, consumers receive €7 M&S vouchers off €50 spent on M&S general merchandise.
Over half a million shoppers have now recycled their clothes through the scheme and received £2.5 million in savings at M&S.
David McCullough, Oxfam’s Director of Trading said: "The reason it has succeeded so well is that British consumers love it – you can save money; reduce, reuse and recycle; get rid of clothes you don’t wear; declutter your home and do something for charity. It’s the recession-proof way to an ethical 2009."
www.oxfam.org.uk
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.