Reducing textile waste

Clothing repairs

• Surf Coast Repair Café (Aireys Inlet) runs monthly events offering free basic repairs for a wide range of items such as clothing and textiles, and more.

Brand repair programs

• Get your gear repaired via Patagonia's Worn Wear program (in store Torquay and Geelong + mail-in option).
• Kuwaii offer a repairs service as well as their Re-Worn trade in program where you can receive a voucher for near new and well loved items.
• Nudie Jeans offer free repairs via repair shops, repair partners or via mobile service globally!

Shoe repairs

• Santoro Shoe Repairs
•  Town & Country Cobbler Shop Waurn Ponds
•  Mister Minit Westfield Geelong
• Shoe Express Geelong

Donate items in good condition to local op shops. Do not donate items that are heavily worn, stained or unwashed.

• Salvation Army Thrift Shop Torquay
• Brotherhood of St Laurence Torquay
• St Luke’s Op Shop Torquay
• Echo Thrift Torquay
• Bellbrae Uniting Church Op Shop
• Seaside seconds Op Shop Anglesea
• The Lorne Op Shop

High quality professional workwear for women including shoes, bags, accessories can be donated through charities in Melbourne to support women with clothing, styling and employment support and training. Note only high quality undamaged items are accepted. 

Fitted for Work (Richmond) supports migrant and refugee women moving into work. Donations accepted:

• Tue-Fri 10am-4pm (rear access of 513 Bridge Rd Richmond)
• Sat-Sun 10am-4pm (Conscious Closet 483-485 Birdge Road Richmond).

Dress for Success (Frankston) empowers women to attain economic independence through professional attire and employment services. Donations accepted:

• Wed 10am-3pm (Shop 6/11 Station St Mall, Frankston)

Quality reusable sporting goods can be donated to local charity Boots for All. Please ensure items are a good quality that you would like to receive yourself. You can donate from home as an individual via courier from your front doorstep or register your local community sports club, business or school as a Boots For All Collection Partner.

Running shoes in good condition can be donate to The Running Company (Torquay and Geelong) who collect sports shoes and donate them to communities in the Northern Territory.

Find your closest tailoring or alterations service, some local options include:

• Alterations Now Waurn Ponds
•  Crest Quality Dry Cleaners
•  Angie’s Clothing Alterations and Repairs Fyansford
•  Amir’s Alterations
•  Geelong affordable clothes alteration.

Women’s rentals

• The Luxe Closet – try on dresses in their Geelong West showroom.
•  Coastal Outfit Hire (COHA) – try on dresses in their Armstrong Creek showroom.
• Designer on Loan - try on dresses in their Geelong West showroom.
• Her Style Dress Hire - Geelong based (online).
• The Volte (online).
• Renting out your own clothes through Closet Drop (online).

Get new items in your rotation through subscription services such as Threadicated, Glam Corner or Melbourne-based Inro (with the option to purchase items to keep). 

Men’s rentals

• Suitor - Australia wide (online).
• Squire Shoppe - offers men’s fashion, suit and kilt hire in Geelong.

Wetsuit or triathlon suit rentals

• Many surf shops offer wetsuit rentals, such as Anglesea Surf Centre, Go Ride a Wave, Torquay Surf Academy. You can also rent triathlon suits with Orca (5 day rental period), pick up and return from Moorabbin.

Clothing recycling pay a small fee to purchase a bag or box for clothing recycling (mail in):

• RCYCL 'Recycle', 'Donation' and 'Repair' bags
•  Textile Recyclers Group 'Returnable Box'
• Upparel 

Underwear recycling

• Project Down Under purchase a underwear only recycling satchel (mail in only)
• Underwear for Humanity (underwear and bras) will recycle other brands if you purchase their underwear first

Brand-specific recycling programs

• Zara has a free textile collection program in select stores for all kinds of clothing and textiles in any condition (including shoes, linen, and accessories) (Melbourne).
• UNIQLO has a free in-store recycling program for its own branded clothing in any condition (Melbourne).
• H&M has a free recycling program (Melbourne).
• THE ICONIC allows you purchase a bag through their RE:THINK Program to either recycle unwearable clothes or donate unwanted but wearable clothes.

• School uniforms: For schools with large quantities, contact Worn Up who recycle textile waste into new products such as school desks. Total Uniform Solutions also manufacture uniforms that are designed for disassembly to aid with recycling at end of life.
• Uniforms: Textile Recyclers Group offers uniform recycling for businesses.
• Corporate workwear: Loop Upcycling offers upcycling and recycling services solutions for corporate workwear.

• Recycle any brand of surf wetsuit at Ripcurl Torquay (in store and mail-in option).
• Recycle Need Essentials branded wetsuits at Need Essentials Torquay

Worn out shoes: Tread Lightly program has a number of collection points where you can take your old sports shoes, gumboots, leather school shoes and hiking boots to be recycled. Closest locations include:

• Rebel Sport
• Athlete’s Foot
• Macpac
• Sports Power Colac
• Intersport South Geelong
• Drummond Golf Geelong

Old work boots

• Recycle with Totally Workwear (Geelong)

Linen and bedding

•  Sheridan Outlet Geelong accepts any brand of pre-loved quilt covers, sheets and towels for recycling (please wash items prior).
• Book a collection via Upparel (for a fee)
• Look for brand specific recycling programs such as In the Sac (accept all brands) or GoKindly (GoKindly branded pillows and doonas only)
• Mechanics rags - check with your local mechanic to see if they accept old towels, clothing, sheets and other textiles.

Mattresses and bed bases

• If buying a new mattress look at which retailers will collect and recycle the old one (check via Australian Bedding Stewardship Council).
• Mattresses / bed bases can be taken to Surf Coast Shire Council Anglesea, Lorne and Winchelsea transfer stations for a small fee, where they are collected and deconstructed for recycling.
• You can also book a fixed price mattress removal with The Mattress Recycling Company who will collect and either clean, restore and redistribute or mechanically deconstruct and recycle.