A London charity that collects unwanted clothes, sells them in its charity shops and funds projects to make fashion fairer and less wasteful.
TRAID is a charity that sits right at the heart of the clothes reuse story. People donate unwanted clothes through home collections, donation banks and its shops, staff sort them by hand, and wearable items go on sale in its London charity shops. The profits pay for TRAID's work with schools, campaigns encouraging people to buy second-hand and repair their clothes, and projects in other countries that help the people who make clothes. It describes its sorting facilities as among the most efficient in the country, and in recent years it has also taken part in pop-up shops around the UK.
TRAID's stated aim is to change fashion for the better and make second-hand clothing the normal first choice instead of new. In its own words it wants to "change the world by keeping the resources we already have in use for longer", and it has described its mission as addressing the negative impacts of the fashion industry. It was set up in 1999, launching with four charity shops and 700 clothing banks, and it has been a signatory partner to Textiles 2030, the UK's textiles sustainability programme, since 2022. We have not seen the names of its founders, as its history page does not give them.
TRAID is a London charity, and its shops are on high streets across the capital. In 2014 it launched a free home collection service, starting with four London councils and later covering all London boroughs. Its history page says about 240 million garments have been reused over its lifetime, saving 655,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide, and that it has committed £8 million to 90 projects in more than 30 countries. Those figures are the charity's own claims. In 2001 it also launched TRAIDremade, a label that makes new clothes from damaged textiles, and in 2003 an education programme for all ages.
On culture, TRAID launched the #Secondhandfirst campaign in 2014 and runs an annual #Secondhandfirst Week each November, which suggests a campaigning and community spirit. A 2018 profile described one person who began as a donation sorter, then became a freelance facilitator leading upcycling and mending workshops, and by 2017 a part-time recycling administrator, which shows how roles can grow within the charity. That is one person's story, told in a magazine interview, not a rule about careers there. We have not read staff reviews.
A charity like this needs many kinds of people. There are shop managers and assistants, sorters, drivers and collection crew, education workers who run workshops in schools, campaigners and communications staff, fundraisers, and finance and data staff who measure the impact. Volunteers also help in shops, though we have not confirmed current volunteering details. If you enjoy fashion, retail, teaching or campaigning, or you simply like the idea of a job that keeps clothes out of landfill, it is a good example of how reuse turns into real work.
Website: traid.org.uk
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