The RealReal has announced the Consign Commitment Initiative, aimed at helping consumers keep unwanted items out of landfills.
Secondhand sustainable luxury resale platform The RealReal has launched its “Consign Commitment” initiative, which encourages consumers to pledge to consign a minimum of 20 percent of their closet items, as a step toward creating a more eco-friendly fashion future. The platform made the announcement on National Consignment Day.
The tentpole, which began in 2017, has seen The RealReal leverage its impact through the years including collaborations with Stella McCartney, Burberry, Jimmy Choo, and Gucci. But this new initiative is its first designed to leverage the power of its 33 million users. The news comes as the global luxury resale market was valued at nearly $40 billion.
“More than 2,000 pieces of clothing are thrown away each second when in reality, 95 percent of trashed clothing could be re-worn, recycled, or reused. Especially well-made items,” Rati Sahi Levesque, The RealReal’s President and Chief Operating Officer, said in a statement. “Our intent with the Consign Commitment is to reduce the amount of textiles that end up in landfill, encourage consumers to buy better quality items, and ultimately shift the way they think about how they dispose of items they no longer have use for.”
The platform says climate change is exacerbated by the fashion industry’s emissions and waste. Present trajectories show that we are heading towards an alarming 3.2 degrees Celsius temperature increase above pre-industrial levels by the end of the century. However, research from McKinsey suggests that the fashion sector can come closer to the 1.5-degree target set by the Paris Climate Accord if just 20 percent of garments are recycled or reused. The RealReal aims to catalyze this change by urging consumers to repurpose their lightly worn clothing, shoes, and accessories, thereby extending the lifespan of quality items and minimizing waste.
By enacting the Consign Commitment, The RealReal is also bolstering its reputation as a responsible player in the luxury goods market. With its stringent authentication process carried out by in-house experts, it has cultivated a secure environment for more than 33 million consumers to buy and sell luxury items. The company offers ease of selling through various options including free virtual appointments, in-home pickups, and direct shipping, making the consignment process seamless for its users.
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