The new pop-up clothes shop We Are: Second Life Fashion is touring around London and the UK. At just £20 a kilogram, second hand clothes from big brands are being sold at low prices, to try and beat fast fashion.
On Sunday 24th October, a friend and I travelled to We Are at Westfield London in Shepherd’s Bush. As I arrived, I was happy to find rack upon rack of good quality vintage clothes from many different well-known brands, as well as many one-of-a-kind pieces.
The main purpose of pop-up shops like We Are is to give clothes a second life. Fast fashion is the overproduction of clothes that move quickly to fit with current trends. This makes a large contribution to climate change and global warming, so it is important to do as much as we can to be sustainable: little changes can make a big difference. I spoke to Phoebe, a 17-year-old working for We Are, who reported that: “by extending the life of a garment by just 9 months, it reduces its carbon, water and waste footprint by around 20-30%”.
The company sells clothes ‘by the kilo’, meaning that a haul of clothes weighing one kilogram would cost only £20. “As well as being good for the environment, it is also good value” said Phoebe. “For example you could buy a Tommy Hilfiger or Ralph Lauren jumper worth £40, but here you could get it for a quarter of the price”. Even though I had hoped to find more jackets or jeans that fit my size (I only saw jeans starting from size 28 or S/M), I managed to find three good-quality sweaters (weighing 1.5kg) for a total of only £30.
Compared to other shops at Westfield, I was glad to find the shop assistants passionate about what they were selling. They were always willing to help and seemed enthusiastic about fashion and helping the environment, unlike some of the fast fashion shops I went into later that day.
We Are: Second Life Fashion are touring London and the UK throughout November - I recommend you find your nearest pop-up shop and experience it yourself at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/we-are-33706723919.
