These 9 Fashion Brands Will Buy Back Your Clothes

When you're done with a clothing item, you have to decide if you want to donate it or go through the effort of trying to sell it. However, now more and more brands are taking greater responsibility for the afterlife of their own clothes. They are making the process of returning clothes as easy as buying new ones.

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Through innovative buy-back programs, more brands are giving customers the opportunity to trade in their pre-loved clothing in exchange for store credit or other exciting incentives.

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The brands then resell, recycle, or upcycle these items, reducing waste and extending the lifespan of the garments. Here are some of our favorite brands that offer a buy-back program:

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Patagonia

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You can trade in your Patagonia gear through its Worn Wear program. You can either drop your gear at their stores or ship them to Patagonia using a free shipping label. Once the team assesses the quality of your used clothes, it will offer you a store credit in the form of an e-gift card. If the team feels that the clothes cannot be resold, they will recycle them responsibly.

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Girlfriend Collective

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Retailer Girlfriend Collective runs a recycling program called reGirlfriend. Similar to Patagonia, it offers store credit to consumers for mailing their old unwanted clothes. These clothes are then recycled into new Girlfriend products. It has partnered with Unifi to recycle all of the returned clothes.

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The North Face

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Outdoor clothing brand The North Face is giving hard-worn garments a second life through The North Face Renewed. You need to take your used apparel to a participating North Face store and you will receive $10 off your next purchase. North Face commercially cleans the apparel, repairs it if required, and puts it up for resale. If it can’t be renewed, it is upcycled through its REMADE Collection, donated, or recycled.

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Carhartt

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Carhartt, the Michigan-based company known for its durable work gear, has introduced Carhartt Reworked, a program that allows you to trade in your old Carhartt jackets, hoodies, and pants to prevent them from ending up in landfills. Simply visit a Carhartt store, drop off your gear, and if accepted, you'll receive a gift card that can be used to buy new and reworked Carhartt products. The Carhartt repair team will handle any necessary repairs and sell the products at a discounted rate.

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Ba&sh

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Ba&sh is known for its Parisian style. The brand has a trade-in program where customers can exchange pre-loved items for cash or store credit. To sell your pre-loved clothing items from Ba&sh, list them on the resale website. Ba&sh will suggest a price range, and you can set a price within that range. Once you find a buyer, ship the items using a pre-paid USPS label. After the buyer accepts the item, you'll receive payment in cash or store credit, based on your preference.

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Another Tomorrow

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Sustainable and ethical brand Another Tomorrow also operates an in-house Authenticated Resale platform for pre-loved clothes. To sell your pre-loved Another Tomorrow items, scan the QR code on the clothing and select the option to resell the item. This will generate a shipping label for you to return the item. The brand will evaluate the returned item and list it for resale. You will receive 90% of the resale value as store credit.

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Tentree

Circularity by tentree is tentree's program to minimize the environmental impact of clothing. You can resell or recycle your old tentree clothes through this program. To start, create an account with their partner SuperCircle and request a free shipping label. Use the label to send your items back. The clothes can be in any condition, as long as they are laundered and clean. Tentree will assess and resell the clothes through their consignment store. If the clothes cannot be resold, they will be upcycled into new yarn and textiles, or downcycled into items like insulation and padding for sports equipment.

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AYBL

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Gymwear brand AYBL is supporting circularity through Re-AYBL, its official platform for pre-loved items. To participate in the Re-AYBL program, you need to set up your account and then list your gently worn items by taking a few pictures of them. Once you finish, your listing will be submitted for review. Once your item is sold, you'll receive a prepaid shipping label to send out your preloved item to its new owner. After the buyer receives and verifies the item, you can choose to claim the selling price in cash or opt for 110% in-store credit to put towards your new workout outfit from AYBL.

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Electric Yoga

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To give new life to your preloved Electric Yoga clothes, the brand has launched an Electric Yoga Recharged platform. Similar to AYBL, you would have to list your pre-loved item with some photos and other details like condition and description. Once approved, it would be listed for sale. When someone agrees to buy it, Electric Yoga will send you a prepaid shipping label to ship it. In return, you will receive a store credit.

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These amazing programs enable customers and fashion brands to earn some extra cash while making fashion more accessible to a wider audience and keeping good quality clothes out of landfills. It's truly a win-win-win situation!