H&M’s Global Recycling Initiative

I am and will always be “head over heels” (pun intended) for fashion.  I don’t know if it is the fabrics, colors, patterns, or the creativity that goes into putting the right “ingredients” of accessories into the “recipe” for ingenuity.  Fashion changes frequently and drastically as seasons come and go, but one thing will always remain the same – our investment, not matter how grandeur or miniscule.  I never like to reference my closet as the safe keeper of my bank account, but I do tend to splurge here and there.  And while our fashion investments, just like most materialistic items, decrease in value I have always found an intrinsic investment by donating my clothing to charitable organizations and great causes.

Today’s Inspiration: Starting this February, H&M, popular fashion chain empire, has decided to take their socially conscious efforts to another level by accepting used clothing from their customers in exchange for store vouchers.

H&M will be working with their partner company, iCollect, to reprocess these used textiles and create new products with them – including, but not limited to cleaning rags, carpet, and insulation.  While the value of the vouchers were not disclosed, your overly-loved clothes (even non-H&M clothes) will be accepted at all H&M stores in the US and worldwide.

“Our sustainability efforts are rooted in a dedication to social and environmental responsibility. We want to do good for the environment, which is why we are now offering our customers a convenient solution: to be able to leave their worn out or defective garments with H&M,” stated H&M CEO Karl-Johan Persson.

H&M has developed seven commitments to sustainability by encompassing the following attributes:

1. Provide fashion for conscious customers
2. Choose and reward responsible partners
3. Be ethical
4. Be climate smart
5. Reduce, reuse, recycle
6. Use natural resources responsibly
7. Strengthen communities

In the end, whether your clothing is recycled within this program, donated to local charities, resold online, or any other avenue – the ultimate goal is to reprocess these goods and keep them out of our landfills.

To learn more about H&M’s Conscious Actions, please visit Sustainability Report 2011.