It’s a trend that is confirmed: fashion is second-hand. In Grenoble, thrift stores have multiplied, and another concept continues to develop: selling clothes by the kilo. An alternative for those looking to dress more responsibly.
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Today at 20:29 | updated today at 20:29
To dodge one of the most polluting industries on the planet, that of textiles, a concept continues to develop: the sale of clothing by the kilo. If it had not met with the expected success in Grenoble, where a dedicated brand had to close its doors, it is because this practice is visibly more successful on the model of ephemeral shops.
“Experience has shown us that this is what works best”, observes Davido of Keep it vintage. This Saturday, June 3, this German company had therefore decided to establish itself, for a day, in the Europole district.
Born from the desire of three friends “to do something good for the environment”, this company organizes ephemeral sales in Germany and France. It targets municipalities with a minimum of 30,000 inhabitants who lack alternatives in this area or who already have buyers aware of the approach. “At the moment, we are often in France, the public is really receptive. We have already been to Grenoble in December and we will be back soon. »
Here the principle is simple: you hunt among the “two to three tons of clothes installed” on the racks, you weigh your finds and you go to the checkout. Behind the scales, it’s Jorel Stevie who keeps the accounts: “With us, it’s €35 per kilo. And there’s everything: from ultra-colorful skirts to classic shirts, not to mention jeans or other accessories. Only “vintage clothes” that the company buys from specialized wholesalers. “There is a whole circuit dedicated to second-hand goods,” explains Davido. Sometimes the clothes come from associations such as the Red Cross, which resells those it does not donate, by weight, in order to finance its solidarity actions. »
Difficult to know more about this famous circuit, of which we know that sometimes, the clothes cross the planet before arriving on the stalls of Grenoble. Despite everything, Davido is convinced, “this system makes it possible to avoid fast fashion, which produces tons of greenhouse gases, and to give clothes a second life rather than producing new ones. »
It is precisely this argument that motivated the many customers to come this Saturday. While searching the shirts, Maëlle, 26, says she is “used to wearing second-hand”. She advocates another way of consuming: “I’ve been doing garage sales since I was 16-17 years old. There, the price side is interesting, 35 € is the price of a top in any store, but also the qualitative side that we no longer find today. We buy less, we wear them longer. »
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“Now that it’s popular, prices have gone up”
On the price, some buyers are more nuanced at the exit. Sonia, for example, paid €20 for a skirt and a dress. She says she has “always bought clothes in frip'”. “Even my mother dressed me with second hand when I was little,” she slips. Selling by the kilo is therefore nothing new for this Grenoble woman, who remembers doing it for the first time on the markets. What is, however, is the enthusiasm around this concept. “A few years ago, we bought it for 10 € per kilo. Now that it’s popular, the prices have risen a lot… it’s a shame because it’s still second-hand, we’re getting a little different from the principle. »
“Dear” is not what we expected to hear from customers. However, many have pointed this out, sometimes coming out empty-handed: “I came here for jeans but €28 is almost the price of a new one, it’s too expensive for me…”, laments Maria. A significant point for the many students present that day, for whom dressing second-hand is sometimes not just an ecological desire, but a need.
Fast fashion, what is it?
Although it has been around since the 90s, the term fast fashion has been used more frequently lately to denounce the economic model of big brands that produce clothes very quickly, very often and at low cost. An industry that has serious social and environmental consequences around the world.
Artisans du monde organized a treasure hunt to raise awareness of the theme of fast fashion.
This Saturday, an animation on this theme was also proposed by Artisans du monde with the shops Regards d’ailleurs and Commerce equitable Grenoble. The objective was to raise awareness of fast fashion through a treasure hunt, while showing that there are more responsible solutions for dressing.
Provided with a small quiz, Florence Thomann, member of this association, questioned the visitors: “How many clothes are sold each year in the world? Out of ten, how many are only worn once or twice? If some wanted to be optimistic, they were quickly disillusioned when they learned that 100 billion pieces of clothing flow across the globe in one year.
The answers made it possible to form this word: “Mess.” “We are known on the question of fair trade but people are not necessarily aware that we have a mission to raise awareness on sustainable development. So we wanted to organize this event, it’s a first for us. »
The idea was also to show that there are alternatives to overconsumption and overproduction of clothing: “Textile is a real black spot on the social or ecological side. We really want to warn about this. We can buy less but of better quality to keep our clothes longer, or buy second-hand. It is possible, and it must be said! »
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