
The Clothing Exchange aims to…
provide a viable alternative to purchasing new clothing by holding events that enable participants to swap clothing they value but no longer wear for those that they will.
The idea came …
the need to solve the problem of unnecessary fashion consumption. Australians spend $1.7 million a year on things they don’t use - what a waste!! The Clothing Exchange provides a swapping service so that people don’t have to purchasing something new, rather re-active existing clothing.
I believe it is the right moment for The Clothing Exchange to take off because…
The Clothing Exchange has been offering a swapping service in Melbourne since 2004, and now operates in Sydney, Adelaide and Perth (and soon to be Brisbane). During the Global Financial Crisis we experienced a surge in interested. And now in the aftermath, the swapping movement is started to be recognized as a significant alternative to shopping and becoming a recognized industry unto itself.
The easiest way to explain The Clothing Exchange is…
swap don’t shop!
The biggest misperception about The Clothing Exchange is…
that because you paid $250 for a pair of jeans, the garment still holds that value. We believe that because you don’t use the garment, it is void of value; and so when it comes time to swap, all garments are treated equally and swapped at a one-to-one basis.
The best moment so far…
Where do I start!? We have been just so so lucky that we have had amazing support right the way along; from being able to participate in L’Oreal Fashion Festival for five consecutive years, holding our events at Federation Square in Melbourne, opening up our own office in Melbourne, offering monthly swaps across Australia, being part of the Collaborative Consumption launch in Australia….. and of course the best is yet to come with National Swap Day being held in October.
The greatest opportunity for The Clothing Exchange is…
being able to capitalise on the increasing green or sustainability awareness where people are trying to live a more low impact life.
Another example of Collaborative Consumption I admire…
the lending libraries such as the Tool Lending library in Santa Rosa, California.
If I could tell readers one thing…
live more by consuming less!
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Ella T. Gorgla, Founder of I-ELLA
Cathy Tao, co-founder of Tourboarding
Mike Karnjanaprakorn, cofounder of Skillshare
Juha Koponen, Founder of Netcycler
Michelle Shearer, Founder of MamaBake
Leah Busque, Founder and CEO of TaskRabbit
Ron J. Williams, founder of SnapGoods
Stephen Rapoport, founder of Crashpadder
Anthony Eskinazi, founder of ParkatmyHouse
Drummond Gilbert, founder of goCarShare
David Mahfouda, Founder of Weeels
Andreas Randow, Founder of StudioShare.org
Emma Jamvold, Founder of SwapItBaby
Dave Llorens, CEO of One Block Off The Grid
Orli Cotel, co-founder of Swap for Good
Owen Rees-Hayward, Co-founder of Thingloop
Juliette Anich, Co-founder of The Clothing Exchange
Keara Schwartz, Founder of Share Some Sugar
Hans Schoenburg, co-founder of GiftFlow
Meriel Lenfestey, Co-founder of Ecomodo
Steve Sammartino, Founder of rentoid.com
Micki Krimmel, Founder of NeighborGoods
Shelby Clark, Founder of RelayRides
James Reinhart, Founder of thredUp
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