The following story was contributed by Danielle Osborne, founder of ClosestCloset. Danielle participated in Plant Chicago's Circular Economy Leaders Network and for the last few years been consistently proving that small businesses like hers can be (and already are) leaders in the circular economy movement!
In 2016, Danielle Osborne moved to Thailand to teach English and mentor teachers. While living in Thailand, and traveling throughout southeast Asia she saw fast fashion littered on the beautiful beaches and strewn throughout rural provinces. When clothing is dropped off at a donation center, items are sorted into piles based on whether it will be sold on the floor. Items not sold on the floor are prepped to be sold to secondhand sellers. Only between 10 and 30 percent of second-hand donations to charity shops are actually resold. These sellers are located in the global south who pay upfront for the clothing without seeing it first. A majority of these items are of such poor quality, they are unable to be sold which is a loss of wage to the hopeful vendors.
A former donation site dropper herself, Danielle was committed to educating others on the path discarded clothing takes after reaching a donation center. After taking a peek into the closets of friends and family, it became clear; we buy things we don’t need, hold onto things we once loved, and discard the rest of it. The average American discards more than 81 pounds of clothing a year. A teacher by trade, Danielle’s consumption of data on fast fashion's environmental impact quickly turned into an action plan. She could think of no one better to take along for this ride, than her lifelong tech savvy friend, Steve Tazic.
The Mission
Extend the life of existing fashion, reduce the amount of clothing in landfills, and turn consumers into activists.
The Result
ClosestCloset disrupts the secondhand market by creating a circular marketplace for used fashion where members use their items as currency. Members post items to their virtual closet, earn instant credits, and use credits to shop other members’ online closest for free. Shoppers can arrange for local pick-up by searching by zip code, or pay for shipping cost for mailed items. Shoppers without a membership can purchase credits to shop items posted online longer than 30 days.
How You Can Help
The past two years have been a whirlwind for us! Members create a revolving wardrobe they can look and feel good about. Partnerships with organizations like Plant Chicago ensure we are getting clothing and accessories to people who need them. Our biggest challenge is we are both employed full-time in very different sectors. We have bootstrapped Closest Closet and are not yet profitable. While we have over 100 members, we need to double that amount in the next six months to remain a physical store. We continue to look for opportunities to grow our small and mighty community of secondhand enthusiasts.
** Plant Chicago supporters can use the code CIRCULARLOVE to get their first month of membership for $1 with 6 credits added to their account. **
You can create a sustainable and revolving closet
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