Why thrifty consumers are turning to pre-loved vogue to save money
11 February, 2021
Katy Lowes created her pre-owned trend venture amid “lockdown boredom” and admits her very own excessive wardrobe was a good catalyst.
Although keen to lessen environmentally friendly impact through clothing re-use, the shrinking space in her apartment primarily drove Ms Lowes to start KLOWES, a Facebook community dedicated to finding latest homes for unnecessary garments.
“My hubby was at breaking level in me for having way too many clothes, triggering us to outgrow our one-room apartment,” says Ms Lowes, who lives on Dubai’s Jumeirah Lakes Towers.
The Briton, an attorney employee, turned to local classifieds website Dubizzle, but became annoyed by “silly offers” on her behalf unused dresses.
“I then considered Facebook and realised there have been lots of pre-loved furniture teams but not way too many for pre-loved fashion,” offers Ms Lowes, 30.
Hence, she launched KLOWES and within weekly, had a lot more than 1,500 users. In the area of half a year, that amount had grown to 6,500.
Having confirmed the level others were seeking to trade fashion things, Ms Lowes recently introduced a dedicated internet site, with an app to check out, “with the check out that recycled trend is hip, funky and on-trend”, she explains.
“I really want persons to start getting creative, perhaps creating their private line of attire from re-worked pre-loved clothing, not just counting on fast style easily purchased found in the malls … for people to realise it’s OK to vary and not follow the crowd.”
KLOWES arrives in a period when the pandemic is threatening careers, squeezing salaries and several residents want to curb spending or find ways to boost income.
The global pre-treasured sector is continuing to grow significantly as people liquidate undesirable items - or turn to continue shopping for quality clothes, but at reduced prices.
The UAE has followed this trend, with famous brands THE BLISSFUL LUXURY Closet and RETOLD both reporting growth.
Ms Lowes, who anticipates her Facebook community will also join the KLOWES web-site and app, says she's seen a “dramatic transformation in attitude” towards investing pre-loved clothes lately.
“Some because they are experiencing redundancies and cannot afford luxuries they were in the past used to, other folks to purely grab a good discount,” says Ms Lowes, who admits she too possesses revised her standard spending habits in the shadow of Covid-19.
“It changed everybody’s mentality and helped put stuff into perspective in what genuinely mattered - and clothes/trend was behind the queue when family group, friends, loved kinds and wellness are thrown in to the equation.
“The shame or embarrassment that once followed buying pre-treasured clothes has disappeared.”
Sian Rowlands has been “championing pre-owned fashion” on the UAE for a decade and reports a steadier uptake and transformation of mindset surrounding the used manner segment.
Her resale manufacturer, RETOLD, grew from a good need to make cash, alongside fiscal pressure from a good thriving shopping habit.
“I was struggling to shell out hire on my apartment despite having a good comfortable cash flow and, after deciding to book my spare room and performing a wardrobe cleanout, I realised why,” says Ms Rowlands, 39.
“I was a good shopaholic and my style consumerism had snuck through to me and set me personally back years when it comes to savings.”
A good fan of second-palm shops in her indigenous England, Ms Rowlands commenced hosting popular regular monthly pop-up shops on 2011. Four years back, she quit an effective design career to start RETOLD full-time and opened up a physical boutique in Al Quoz, Dubai.
“I knew I wasn’t the only person in Dubai spending extra on fashion than I could afford,” she says. “Actually, searching, I knew it had been such a universal problem that I had a business concept on my hands.”
Her store footfall divides equally between returning and clients. And 2020 only increased that.
“Not merely did we visit a rise in demand for our concept generally, we also saw a huge increase in persons decluttering wardrobes and taking unwanted items.
Source: www.thenationalnews.com
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