Are Australian Consumers Ready to Wear Recycled Clothing to Practice Sustainable Consumption?

Abstract

This paper presents a comprehensive review of the extant literature to explore if Australian consumers are ready to reuse clothing as a pathway to sustainability. In this study, sustainability aspects such as collaborative consumption, apparel disposal methods, acquisition of used clothing, consumer concerns and attitudes towards reuse, and sellers’ readiness to offer sustainable solutions to clothing consumption have been explored in the context of the Australian market. The most important research contribution of this paper is the answer to whether Australia is ready to adopt the reuse of clothing through remaking and repurposing as a sustainable approach for the consumption of clothing at its end-of-life (EOL). Facilitators and challenges for the secondhand clothing sector have also been discussed. The findings highlight challenges including consumer awareness, an unwillingness to use secondhand clothing, limited recycling facilities, the availability of brand-new cheaper clothing, and the limited range of secondhand clothing. The facilitators include government policies towards recycling, fashion brands’ initiatives, and high-quality rejected clothing with the potential for reuse. It has been established that creating consumer awareness of secondhand clothing is essential to penetrate the market. Furthermore, there are ample opportunities to research consumers and the clothing reuse and recycling sector in Australia.