Earn Credit From J. Crew by Helping Them Recycle Your Old Swimwear–Keeping Clothes Out of Landfills

March 1, 2024 journo

American swimwear and accessory brand J. Crew is offering free store credit to anyone who feels like taking the time to recycle their old bathing suits and bikinis.

Unlike cotton jeans, swimwear is often made of blends of different fabrics, both artificial and organic. While this makes them ideal for the sea, it essentially destines them for the landfill.

Looking to make the extra effort to cut out fashion waste from their supply chain, J. Crew has partnered with a recycling firm called SuperCircle to help gather up and properly dispose of old, ripped, or unwanted swimwear.

“…[W]e needed to help our customers responsibly dispose of their swimsuits—either ours or other brands—when they were done wearing them and avoid them going into landfill,” Lisa Greenwald, the company’s chief merchandising officer, told Adele Peters at Fast Company Magazine.

J. Crew already uses some recycled fibers for making new products, but Greenwald and the rest of the execs felt they had to do more.

MORE TAKE-BACK RECYCLING PROGRAMS: Ikea to Buy Back Used Furniture Worldwide in Recycling Push For Black Friday

A take-back program organized by J. Crew but fulfilled by SuperCircle is present at all of its stores. $5.00 in store credit is given to anyone who brings a ruined or unwanted swimsuit from their brand or any other brand. You can even get free shipping labels online to send them in via the mail.

MORE TAKE-BACK RECYCLING PROGRAMS: H&M In-Store Recycling Machine Turns Old Clothes into New Threads—A World First

Once collected, SuperCircle uses company data to sort bathing suits and bikinis by textile type. Tags are removed, and the clothing is shredded into loose fiber and baled into large bundles to be united with those of other corporations. Then these large bales are sent to textile manufacturers to make new thread, or elsewhere for downcycled products like packaging or insulation.

SHARE This With Your Friends—Maybe They Have Something To Recycle…