Clothing collection
The clothing collection programme is our response to the importance of closing the textile cycle and extending the life of the clothes, shoes and accessories that our customers no longer need. It is also a way to reduce textile waste while supporting social initiatives.
We have been running our second-hand clothing collection programme since 2018. In 2023, we extended this to all LPP shops in Poland, and then in 2024 we extended it to shops abroad – the programme is currently operating in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and the UK.
How does it work?
You can bring your used clothes, shoes and accessories to any LPP brand shop, and some provide special bins for unwanted clothes. If the shop does not have them, packed items can be handed directly to the shop assistant. The most important thing is that the donated textiles are not wet or dirty.
The donated clothing articles are sent to action partners, who then sort the items – those suitable for further use are refreshed and put into second rotation. The remaining ones are upcycled, downcycled or recycled according to the textile waste hierarchy.
Do you have any questions?
Check out the FAQ.
Does the donated clothing have to be from the LPP brands?
No, you can donate textiles from any brand.
Can I donate shoes and accessories too?
Yes, we collect not only clothes but also shoes and accessories.
Can I return clothes that are not in good condition?
Yes, the collected textiles are first professionally sorted by type, quality, and even type of material. Clothes that are suitable for reuse are donated to people who are homeless or are put into second rotation. The rest is sent to upcycling, downcycling, or recycling.
What happens to the textiles donated in stores?
We send the collected clothes from the LPP shops to our partners, where they are professionally sorted. Each item is assigned to an appropriate category in order to keep it in circulation for as long as possible. Our partners operate various business models but, according to the following hierarchy, the clothes can be:
- donated to people in need,
- sold in second-hand clothing stores – with part of the profits being donated to charity,
- upcycled – to be used to produce higher-value items, such as home decoration,
- downcycled – to be reprocessed into lower value textiles, e.g. cleaning cloths,
- recycled – we use polyester clothing together with the Use Waste start-up to research textile-to-textile recycling technology.
Clothing items that cannot be reused or recycled due to their very poor quality or their failure to meet hygiene and safety standards undergo a rigorous waste management process.
How do we verify where the collected clothes actually go?
The organisations we work with have substantial experience in the industry and have developed transparent verification and reporting procedures. They guarantee an ethical approach to handling textiles, in accordance with the agreed hierarchy of processes.
Who are the collection partners?
We work with local organisations, so that their projects have a direct impact on the local communities. We select them based on their experience, good practices in collecting used clothing, and level of transparency.
In Poland, through the St. Brother Albert Aid Society, clothes are distributed to people suffering from homelessness. The remaining ones are managed according to the hierarchy of textile processing. In Slovakia, the collection is operated by Ekocharita, in the Czech Republic by Ubrania do Oddania, and in the UK by Yellow Octopus Group.
Does LPP profit from the collection?
No, the main goal of clothing collection is to close the textile loop and provide direct social assistance and to support the charitable organisations who our partners work with. Additionally, in Poland, as part of the ‘Sorting Room’ project, beneficiaries of the Centre for Social Integration in Gdynia, individuals at risk of social and vocational exclusion, train for a profession by sorting collected clothing. This process allows them to develop the skills necessary for the labour market.
Towards circular fashion
Collecting used clothing is the first step towards circular fashion, which allows us to keep clothing, footwear and accessories in circulation. Despite efforts to prolong the lifespan of textiles, eventually each product will lose its functionality. We aim to ensure that, even when it happens, they do not become waste, but are put back into circulation through recycling. Currently, only 1% of used textiles are fully recycled.
Recycling technologies are not yet sufficiently developed to cover market demand. This is why it is so important for us to fund innovation in this area and to expand our in-store collection programme. Our partnership with the Use Waste start-up, launched by LPP in 2022, is an important step in building the future European textile recycling market, and the collection of garments provides us with good quality polyester for research.
Social aspect
The widespread clothing collection campaign translates into a growing demand for segregation process services. For textiles to be reused, they first must be properly categorised. It is crucial not only to assess whether an item can be put to another use, but also to segregate garments for upcycling, downcycling or recycling according to their material composition, among other things. Cotton textiles, for example, are used for different processes than those made of polyester etc.
The need for professional segregation has created an opportunity for further cooperation between LPP and the St. Brother Albert Aid Society within the 'Sorting Room' project. The initiative, implemented since 2022 at the Centre for Social Integration in Gdynia, has enabled the social and vocational activation of the organisation's wards by creating job positions for sorting clothing collected from donations.