The results come as the retailer publishes the findings of a poll which revealed that 74% of UK residents threw away unwanted clothes over the past year.
The shwopping scheme, which is endorsed by actress Joanna Lumley, encourages customers to donate an item of clothing every time they shop at Marks & Spencer. Under the scheme M&S customers shwopped eight items every minute since it was launched in April 2012.
Commenting on the result Ms Lumley said: I’m thrilled that UK shoppers have become UK shwoppers. We set out to change the way people shop and put an end to clothes going into landfill half a million items is a great start. We’re determined to give every item of clothing a future and help some of the world’s poorest people in the process. So, this weekend dig out that old t-shirt you haven’t worn for years and give it a new lease of life.
M&S said it is aiming to help stop the one billion items of clothing that end up in landfill every year, with ultimate goal of collecting 350 million items a year the same amount that it sells.
All items collected under the scheme are donated to international charity Oxfam for re-sale, reuse and recycling.
TRA
The Textile Recycling Association, the UKs trade body for used clothing and textile collectors, sorters and reprocessors, has commended M&Ss efforts to raise the profile of textile recycling.
Alan Wheeler, national liaison manager for the TRA, told letsrecycle.com: As a trade association, we welcome any legitimate initiative that promotes the collections of used clothing and textiles in a positive manner. All bona fide do a vital job and generally the promotion of used clothing and textile collections like the M&S and Oxfam scheme have a positive impact for the industry as a whole.
However Mr Wheeler said that the UK needs to work to capture the clothing that is unnecessarily thrown away. He said: Back in 2010, Defra estimated that the public were buying around 2 million tonnes of new textiles and disposing of about 1 million tonnes, the majority of which was clothing. WRAP are about to update these figures and what I think they will show is that there is still an awful lot of seemingly good quality clothing being unnecessarily thrown away.
BHS
In a bid to further increase the number of items donated M&S is holding a money off event between June 21 and 24 which will see shwoppers receive a 5 voucher when they spend 35 or more.
Marks & Spencer isnt the only national retailer working to promote textile recycling as British Home Stores (BHS) has joined forces with Clothes Aid to raise funds for the NSPCC. The scheme will run until Saturday (June 23) and will see BHS stores in London and the South offer a 5 voucher to those who donate a bag of clothing.
Emma Taylor, NSPCC corporate fundraising manager, said: Having a clothes clear out is a great way for people to support the NSPCC during this challenging economic climate. The charity relies on the generosity of the general public for more than 82 per cent of the income it needs to raise each year. All the money raised through the promotion will help the NSPCC to end cruelty to children.
Survey
The survey commissioned by Marks & Spencer, and conducted by YouGov, found that one in five people have discarded an item after just one wear and one in three people have admitted to throwing away more than six items of clothing in the past year. In addition it found that cheaper items are more readily disposed of with 44% of one wear wonders costing under 20.
The survey polled 2,229 UK residents on their shopping behaviour and took place between April 16 and 18 2012.
Subscribe for free