Companies selling used clothing and gear

Of course, we're all familiar with the consignment stores, but there has been a stunningly slow movement from the large retailers to re-sell their own goods. I could be wrong, but I believe Patagonia has led the way on this with its WornWear on-line store.

REI seems to have recently also gotten into the game with their Good & Used store.

Given we need to start taking a lighter toll on the planet, this is a wonderful idea. I suspect we will start to see the other brands doing the same shortly.

Brian

Not a company, but I've had lots of great experiences buying used off Mountain Project (rock climbing forum), Poshmark, and (for Women's clothing) ThreadUp

B the Hiker said:

Of course, we're all familiar with the consignment stores, but there has been a stunningly slow movement from the large retailers to re-sell their own goods. I could be wrong, but I believe Patagonia has led the way on this with its WornWear on-line store.

REI seems to have recently also gotten into the game with their Good & Used store.

Given we need to start taking a lighter toll on the planet, this is a wonderful idea. I suspect we will start to see the other brands doing the same shortly.

Brian

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My nearby Play it Again sporting goods store will occasionally have slightly used snowshoe, skis and other outdoor stuff.

I'm surprised it's taken this long for companies to figure out they can profit twice off the same gear. I just sent an older quilt to a cottage manufacturer and they harvested the down from that to put into a new quilt for the cost of a new shell and labor. Saves me money and puts the same profit into the manufacturer's pocket as if they had made it from all new materials. Win-win.

A good start but if it's not Patagonia in the former situation or bought at REI in the latter your hands are tied. Plus credit is fine but cash would be better. Have not consigned anything at IME or Ragged Mountain in awhile but their options were much more wide open and flexible the last time I consigned anything. Also there is always Ebay!

On a slightly related topic, Virtually all polyester, fleece & wicking shirts has washing instructions not to use Fabric Softeners. From what I see online, it limits the effectiveness of the garment to repel water/wick moisture. As far as I can tell, there is no way to tell if used garments were washed correctly.

(In our house, my wife who will never be on a peak in winter, again uses fabric softener on everything she washes so I keep all my hiking clothing out of the mainstream laundry. Okay, I do most of the household laundry, but not all.)

So my thought would be not to buy any clothing that has specific washing instructions that say no fabric softeners or jackets that can't be put in a dryer. Other than snowshoes, crampons or other items that are hard and can be easily looked at for wear and tear, I'm not sure I would buy used hiking clothing.

skiguy said:

A good start but if it's not Patagonia in the former situation or bought at REI in the latter your hands are tied. Plus credit is fine but cash would be better. Have not consigned anything at IME or Ragged Mountain in awhile but their options were much more wide open and flexible the last time I consigned anything. Also there is always Ebay!

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From cars to clothing, re-using is my favorite of the "three Rs." I'm a big fan of hand-me-downs, Wornwear, Ebay, Craigslist, and of course, ski sales/swaps.

TEO said:

From cars to clothing, re-using is my favorite of the "three Rs." I'm a big fan of hand-me-downs, Wornwear, Ebay, Craigslist, and of course, ski sales/swaps.

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Despite its many downsides, Facebook seems to have "Buy Nothing" groups dedicated to reuse and recycling all kinds of stuff. My local group has lots of members and an abundance of baby clothes. Who knows, a pair of alpine touring skis and boots might show up some day.

Very short notice, but between now and September 17, 2023, Patagonia is buying back used Patagonia clothing at an additional 50%.
https://wornwear.patagonia.com/trade-it-in
They take old rain jackets at virtually any condition.

Brian