Someone has discovered a "new business opportunity" in old clothes. In various residential areas of the city, there are currently a few people from clothing factories who go door-to-door to buy old uniforms, but their numbers are still small. Where should old uniforms end up? On online forums, a netizen called "Qianlima Paotui" (Thousand-li Horse Errands) named Mr. Chen has also joined this行列. His main business is courier services, but this year he started trying out "recycling old clothes." "Discovering the business opportunity in old clothes was quite accidental," Mr. Chen said. "A customer from Taizhou who does my courier business produces mops, and these mop strips are made from deconstructed old clothes, which can be considered as recycling waste. Moreover, this customer has a significant demand for old clothes." Mr. Chen also learned that many citizens are troubled by how to deal with their old clothes. Thus, with "supply and demand," just by collecting and reselling, one can make a steady profit. He has already resold over a dozen batches of old clothes in a month, each batch weighing around 500 pounds. The collection price is 1 yuan per pound, while the selling price ranges from 3-5 yuan per pound. However, transportation and storage costs are relatively high.
Relevant personnel introduced that abroad, the value of old clothes has been explored earlier and more thoroughly. Seven years ago, a Japanese company developed a fabric made from recycled old clothes called "ECOCIRCLE" (Eco Cycle), which is a regenerable polyester fiber fabric used by an old outdoor goods brand in the U.S. Currently, a well-known domestic sportswear brand has introduced this material and technology. Notably, at the end of last year, an organization established the first global textile clothing recycling standard (GRS). This standard supports clothing enterprises in producing eco-friendly products using recycled materials. Clothes certified under this standard will be labeled with gold, silver, or bronze marks based on the percentage of recycled content, making it clear to consumers.
"Old clothes are collected, sent to factories, crushed, undergo chemical reactions, polymerization, and other steps to become new fabrics. These clothes will have a 'Clothes Year Wheel' mark on their labels. The more marks, the more times they have been regenerated," relevant personnel introduced. According to President Kamei Nobuo of Teijin Fibers Ltd., Japan, this process reduces energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions in the ecosystem by approximately 80%.