Have you thought about how much impact consumerism is having on the planet? The mindset that we currently have about needing the latest gadget, wearing the right label clothing and footwear, owning the best car we can afford – not only is it a lot of pressure, it’s also not great for our planet. All these items – in fact every single thing we own, has come from somewhere. The material has had to be grown, mined or manufactured, then it’s had to be processed (often in a different part of the world to where the material originated from) and combined with other elements to create the finished item – and then it has to be transported to whichever country it’s going to be sold in. And in the case of tech – there are a lot of different elements required to create a device! This all has a huge carbon footprint. Then think about the fact there are 8 billion people who all want the newest device, the latest trend clothing etc. And you can see how this cannot be sustained by our planet. So why wouldn’t you buy preloved?
PreLoved Clothing
When we talk about buying preloved, our minds instantly think of clothing. And why wouldn’t they? We all know fast fashion is bad for the planet, but did you know how scary some of the statistics are around fashion? Firstly (and I quote this a lot so apologies if you’ve already heard it) – if we stopped making all clothing today, across the whole planet there would still be enough items of clothes in existence to clothe the next 6 generations – of 8+ billion people! Can you even begin to imagine how much that actually amounts to? Between Shein and Temu alone, they create so many products, that they require 108 flights every single day to transport it all. The carbon footprint of this alone is utterly ridiculous.
Now I totally understand that, when times are hard, we need to save money and look for the most budget friendly options. However buying something that’s so cheap, it probably hasn’t been made very well and will only last you a couple of months, isn’t actually going to save you money in the long run. Buying preloved instead, means you’re likely to be able to afford better made brands – which will last longer, so saving you money as you’re not replacing things every few weeks. So why wouldn’t you buy preloved? It’s easier than ever with the likes of Ebay (using UK based sellers) Vinted and local Buy and Sell Facebook groups, as well as our trusty charity shops. You may even be able to find a local War on Waste Facebook group where many people are just giving their ‘stuff’ away for free. There are also helpful apps such as OLIO and Trash Nothing where you’ll find all sorts of freebies.
PreLoved Tech
Keeping up with the latest technology is one of our biggest sources of expenditure these days. Between mobile phones, tablets, gaming equipment and accessories, smart TVS, smart watches etc – the constant development and production of the newest models is hugely demanding on the environment too, let alone the unethical practices like mining and poor working conditions. Many of our devices contain components that are sourced globally, meaning they’ve a huge carbon footprint before they even get to you. So when you can buy a reconditioned device and save yourself a fair bit of money at the same time, why wouldn’t you buy PreLoved? There are some very reputable companies that have thoroughly checked the devices they receive and are transparent about the condition they’re in. I personally have used Back Market a couple of times so can vouch for their efficiency and honesty. The other benefit of using a business like Back Market, is they will take your old devices, often as a part exchange, saving you even more money – and helping to reduce the clutter of old devices tucked away in your drawers and cupboards!
PreLoved Books, Toys & Homeware
The list of items you can buy PreLoved is seemingly endless. Books, toys, furniture – I recently had a client ask me to source a Preloved butter dish – and there are loads on Vinted! So now you know. I challenge you to find something you can’t buy PreLoved! You can always browse through antique stores, car boot sales, charity shops etc if you’d prefer to check the condition of the item you’re in need of first. Toys are another potentially expensive purchase. Again, it’s so easy to pick up toys people are giving away on local Facebook groups, alternatively Ebay and Vinted have got you covered. Let me know how you get on!
As for books, we think of books as being quite an ‘eco-friendly’ product as they’re made from renewable resources. However, millions of trees are cut down every year to create the paper for our books, at a time we’re trying to reduce deforestation. Again, buying secondhand is really is. My recommendations for sourcing PreLoved books are charity shops – Oxfam also has it’s own online bookstore and there’s a fabulous company called World of Books. WOB is my go to place for books and most of the books I buy for my children come from there. Of course if you’re really trying to keep costs down, but have a bookworm in the house, I really encourage you to join your local library. They’re an underused and underappreciated resource.
Next time you ‘need’ to buy something, please check out some of these recommendations and make secondhand your first choice.