The North Face has launched a pilot clothing take-back/recycling program called Clothes the Loop, aimed at keeping billions of pounds of apparel and footwear out of landfills.
The program works like this: customers can drop off used clothing, hats and footwear from any brand in any condition at bins in 10 participating The North Face retail stores. Collected items are sent to an I:Collect (I:Co) recycling center where they are sorted and either resold or recycled into raw materials such as insulation, carpet padding or toy stuffing.
Proceeds accrued through the program will be donated to The Conservation Alliance, which funds community-based campaigns to protect outdoor areas. Customers who donate used apparel earn one discount voucher per drop off per day that they can use towards the purchase of The North Face products.
The retailer says that, according to EPA estimates, more than 26 billion pounds of apparel, footwear and other textiles were thrown away in 2010, nearly 85 percent of which ended up in the landfill.
Source: Environmental Leader