I’m grateful that my daughters have managed to avoid the pressures put on young people these days, to use far too much make-up along with the almost-obligatory surgery to ‘correct’ any real or imagined imperfections, while spending fortunes on fast fashion so the outfits can show off the new body. It’s partly because of these views that I’ve not been drawn into the global Love Island phenomenon, since I’ve assumed that it represents much of what I dislike about the modern world. 

 

As a regular reader of the Waste & Resources Action Programme newsletter, I’ve started to wonder whether I’ve been overly judgmental though, since it was through this medium that I realised the producers of the dating show are trying to make a difference by encouraging folk to buy second hand clothes rather than new. Yes – thanks to a collaboration with eBay UK, this year’s British Islanders will be wearing pre-loved clothes sourced entirely through the online ‘exchange’ store. I did some digging and found a press release in which Jemma Tadd, head of fashion at eBay UK says: “The overwhelming response we’ve had to the initial announcement is testament to how much this change is needed, as well as the public appetite for this. We cannot wait to see all of the outfits come through on the show and remove any stigmas around pre-loved. We hope when people see this on the Islanders, it inspires them to either add a couple of pre-loved pieces to their wardrobes, or sell stuff they no longer use to keep things in circulation.”   

 

Although the programme’s only been running for a couple of weeks, the searches being made on eBay are already showing that this new initiative is making a difference with people seemingly coming to realise that there’s something to be proud of when buying second hand, in terms of both saving money and helping save the planet. I understand that not enough reference is being made on the programme by these young influencers though, that what they’re wearing isn’t new, and I hope that this can quickly be rectified so that maximum impact can be achieved before the series ends. 

If you’re wondering why this is so important to me, check out WRAP’s our 2017 report ‘Valuing Our Clothes: the cost of UK fashion’ – and then consider the global impact - at: https://wrap.org.uk/sites/default/files/2020-10/WRAP-valuing-our-clothes-the-cost-of-uk-fashion_WRAP.pdf

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