Clothing Libraries: Another Product Service System
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 03.31.08
We love libraries here at TreeHugger. They’re a perfect example of a Product Service System (PSS) where you get the service of an item without having to own it and all the cost and upkeep time that requires. In the past we’ve discussed Toy Libraries and Tool Libraries. But it seems we’ve forgotten to mention Clothing Libraries.
The ones I’m familiar with are like the Belmont Clothes Library in Western Australia. A volunteer run organisation with over 1,500 fashion garments on its books it loans out, for free, male and female apparel to unemployed people, so they can look smart for crucial job interviews. We were reminded of this when reader Joe F. left a message on our Q&A post on Green Business Suits. Joe is offering his collection of pre-loved business suits to a worthy organisation, like Belmont. Anyone know of something similar in the USA that Joe can donate his suits to?
Belmont also worked with a men's retail chain, Worth's Menswear, who helped the library through a scheme “whereby customers buying suits from its stores were offered a $ 50 trade-in on an old suit that had been dry cleaned.” These trade-ins were then donated to the library. For other clothing libraries, elsewhere in Australia, have a look at their list.
Also of interest in this vein is the Maternity Clothes Library run by the La Leche League in the UK. For a tiny fee of about £2 expecting mothers can borrow maternity clothes for the duration of the pregnancy. They too would welcome benefactors willing to donate their oversized ‘bump’ clothing, no longer in use.
I am a writer at the Wisconsin State Journal in Madison Wisconsin. I am wondering if there are any libraries that lend clothes, tools or toys in southern Wisconsin. If there are, I'd like to interview people using or managing them for an upcoming article.
Don't forget that the most common clothing libraries are also known as costume shops! Sure they won't likely be used for landing that next job, but clothing and accessories are preserved and archived from season to season, adding new popular culture references while maintaining the old standards.
It would be interesting to report on how they are categorized and what filing systems they use (i.e., whether these systems are similar to online clothing retailers and what identifiers are unique as far as geography, time period and holiday are concerned).
Great idea!!
I wish it would spread.
it's not a library, but in the u.s. "dress for success" is an organization that accepts gently-used women's businesswear to donate to lower-income women for job interviews and as a starting work wordrobe.
there is a similar organization that takes donated wedding and prom dresses, but i can't recall the name.
Dress for Success takes donations of women's clothing, Career Gear does it for men.
I have a question. Can someone help please? The question is:
Is there any CFL lamp that has instant ON feature? Would appreciate a response from you. Thank you.
Jagat