H&M Launches Global Clothing Collection and Recycling Program

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December 6, 2012

H&M is the first fashion company to launch a clothing collecting initiative worldwide, which begins in February. At that time, customers will be able to hand in used garments in H&M stores in all 48 markets.

“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," said Karl-Johan Persson, CEO of H&M.

Through the global initiative H&M’s customers can save natural resources and contribute to reduce environmental impact by avoiding textile waste, the company said in a statement. Any pieces of clothing, from any brand and in any condition are accepted. In return, the customer will receive a voucher for each bag brought. The collected clothes are then handled by H&M’s partner, I:Collect, which provides the infrastructure in which consumer goods are repeatedly reprocessed and made available for new use.

Every year tons of textiles are thrown out with domestic waste and end up in landfill. As much as 95 percent of these clothes could be used again; re-worn, reused or recycled - depending on the state of the garment, according to H&M. Long-term, H&M wants to reduce the environmental impact of garments throughout the lifecycle and create a closed loop for textile fibers.

The goal is to find technical solutions to reuse and recycle textile fibers on a larger scale, which is why H&M has set up its Conscious Foundation to support innovation to close the loop on textiles and social projects along H&M’s value chain.

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