Kilo Sales: A Guide to Sustainable, Vintage Clothing in Bristol
The Croft Magazine// By Ania Townsin, Style Digital Editor
A run down of kilo sales including how they work, how to secure the best quality second hand clothing, and the venues in Bristol to keep an eye out for, in order to create a new sustainable wardrobe this Autumn.
As the fashion industry accounts for about 10% of global carbon emissions, one of the best ways to secure second hand vintage clothing without the hefty price tags of high street shops is through kilo sales. Kilo Sales use the weight of the clothing materials to measure the cost of the purchase. Regardless of the brand the price stays the same! This is a great way to find unique, sustainable pieces that would otherwise be taken to landfill. Kilo sales bring a new life into otherwise neglected vintage clothing and allows for retro trends to return! Two great Bristol options to get involved with kilo sale shopping are Preloved Kilo and Paintworks Kilo Sale.
Preloved Kilo-
Preloved Kilo is a company that travels across the country and frequently to Bristol’s signature venue Bristol Beacon, to set up a pop up store for the day with enough stock to cover four floors with clothing and accessories. Their items include a wide range of denim, 70s and 80s inspired dresses and knitwear, and vintage sports sweats such as Nike, Adidas and Rebook pieces. They even have upcycled trainers, such as Converse, and accessories including sunglasses, jewellery and bags.
Preloved are the biggest vintage sellers in the UK and have saved as much as 500 tonnes of clothing from going to landfill. In January 2017 the first event took place in Bristol’s very own Motion nightclub after starting with pop up stalls at a variety of festivals and events. Head buyer Wayne, travels abroad personally hand picking items of the highest quality second hand pieces. While there may be the odd imperfections in some of the clothing, an item missing a button for instance, is easily fixable and means clothing kept in circulation longer, making shopping more eco-friendly and reducing your carbon footprint!
Since the lockdown took a hit on the business, the team have managed to secure a deal with George at ASDA to supply sustainable clothing to the mainstream public! This is a major step in helping to promote second hand items on a mass scale as affordable and accessible for everyone, something which previously limited people’s second hand purchases regularly.
As Preloved set up regular day events in major cities all across the country, they will next be returning to Bristol on Sunday 14th November! This event is definitely not one to miss on for the chance to pick out some quality, branded clothing at great costs.
Paintworks-
Another distinctive kilo sale venue is Paintworks at Arno’s Vale in Bristol which is a new, vibrant site created from a previously derelict industrial complex. Paintworks hosts a range of arts events and exhibitions aiming to encourage positive relationships with the arts and surrounding communities. They have a great variety of retro clothing pieces and accessories for wholesale prices, ideal for fashion conscious students on a budget with a kilo of clothing weighing just £15.
With the next kilo sale taking place on Sunday 10th October, this is definitely a date to add to your diary! Paintworks is again an events space which tries to advertise sustainable shopping with a variety of kilo sales and events such as vintage furniture sales. Their aim is to remind people of the importance of recycling and bringing life back into old homeware and clothing. Even better, they're also encouraging people to bring their own bags to prevent wasted plastic at the event.
Every item is individual, so as a tip make sure to grab something if it catches your eye otherwise it will get picked up by someone else!
Kilo Sales are a great way to shop consciously with a huge variety of unique, individual pieces meaning no chance of awkwardly heading to campus wearing the same sweater as the person sat next to you! It’s still always best to shop locally where possible, but kilo sales are successfully helping to increase the accessibility of second hand vintage clothing, bit by bit aiming to create a greener fashion industry. There’s lots to get involved with in the local Bristol area which make it more accessible to shop sustainably and affordably so there’s no excuses!
Featured Image: Ania Townsin, background art- Pinterest