The Sustainable Sunday Quote

                                “Fashion is so much bigger than the latest trends - it should be something that we think about as a society.”

Sara Baldwin Schatz is the founder of Fountain Square alt-boutique Lux&Ivy, a second-hand shop. In an interview with Julia Spangler she said: "My interest in secondhand goes way beyond feeling and aesthetic. I truly believe that it is the most responsible way to shop. Why waste precious resources creating new clothing that is not made to last? Especially when so much beautiful, well-made clothing is already in existence." Second-hand clothing is then also a great solution to reduce environmental pollution (caused by the fashion industry).

Unfortunately, many consumers don't feel comfortable buying second-hand clothing. A study done by Kleine, Kleine and Kernan showed that we have some we perceive our possessions as part of ourselves. Clothes, in that case, are an intimate part of our existence. This is very interesting, as it highlights our level of involvement with the objects and hence influences our acceptance or rejection towards the objects. A common connotation towards second-hand, or used clothing might be "Buying something that someone else no longer wants to wear?", creating the feeling of being less valuable than this person as the item was not good enough for him/her, but is for you. Another connotation towards used clothing might be that used clothing is "dirty". Goffman describes this as "territorial encroachment"; we fear that previously owned clothes might have body markings of the previous owner which make the item unwanted.

Therefore, it is important to explore the symbolic and psychological aspects of how we perceive second-hand clothing. Rucker et al. even suggest that research into the connotations associated with used clothing could provide insights about values attached to possessions, and hence offer insights into the world of consumption. As this is a huge part of environmental pollution (caused by fashion), this topic merits further research.

Write it down

Stay fashionable, stay sustainable.

Until next time!   

Sources:
Goffman, E. (1971). Relations in Public. New York: Basic Books.

Kleine, R. E., Kleine, S. S.,  and Kernan, J.B. (1993). Mundane Consumption and the Self: A Social-Identity Perspective. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 2 (3), 209-235.

Rucker, M., McGee, B., Alves, M., Hopkins, T., Sypolt and Watada, M. (1995). Factors Influencing Consumer Inititation of Secondhand Markets. European Advances in Consumer Research, (2), 425-429.

Solomon, M. R., (2012). Consumer behavior, buying, having and being (10th Ed.). ISBN: 9780273767312

Spangler, J. (2015). What’s It Like to Run a Secondhand Shop? Retrieved from: http://www.fairforallguide.com/2015/10/02/whats-it-like-to-run-a-secondhand- shop/