GCU London, the post-graduate campus of Glasgow Caledonian University, joined forced with Marks & Spencer, Oxfam and Business in the Community, to be the first organisation to bring Shwopping to the workplace.
Together they urged staff and students to show their old unwanted clothes some love on Valentines Day by donating them to the university’s Shwopping campaign. In return for their environmentally-friendly generosity, all those who shwopped received a £5 Marks & Spencer voucher – not to mention a much-needed wardrobe clear out, making plenty of room for their new spring/summer collections.
GCU London is committed to engaging with the wider university and encourages its business students to reflect upon the impact and role of business – not only commercially but also from a social standpoint.
Fellow in Community Engagement Stephen Doyle said: “Every year one billion items of clothing are sent to landfill – which is a staggering 25% of all items sold in the UK.
“At GCU London we do not believe that this is sustainable and we want to help change that, which is why we have joined the Shwopping campaign. All the clothes – including shoes – which our staff and students brought in have been donated to Oxfam to be resold, reused or recycled.
“By Shwopping you can create space in your wardrobe for something new, reduce the amount of landfill and help support people living in poverty.”
Since Marks & Spencer launched Shwopping, 2.8 million items of clothing have been donated – but that is just the equivalent of what is sent to landfill daily.
Mr Doyle added: “More needs to be done and that is why GCU London decided to get involved. The benefit of this is that it makes donation and recycling convenient: we collect it from you and Oxfam collects it from us. That is the beauty of what M&S has been doing since it launched Shwopping originally.
“If a garment raises £20 it can provide essentials for a home farmer with a vegetable garden to sustain a family, or six teachers with essential materials to help educate pupils out of poverty.
“Shwopping provides a practical way in which people can make a difference and by bringing it to the workplace we believe we have made it even easier to get involved. However, there is an important lesson attached to this: GCU and the School for Business in Society believe in good business done well. This is an integral part of our philosophy and teaching.
“When we launched this event, M&S delivered a brilliant masterclass to our students about responsible business management and the Shwopping initiative.
“We want our students to think about the role that business has in society and how it can be managed to achieve a benefit to all. Bringing M&S onto our campus for the masterclass and the Shwopping event provided us with an opportunity to help students understand how a business can be both successful and responsible, and how it can be an agent for change in society and business.”
GCU has earned an international reputation for the high quality of its fashion and luxury brand courses, which equip students with the creative and practical skills for brand and marketing professionals working in the luxury brand marketing and management sectors.
Students Shwop till they drop with GCU London and M&S
A LEADING university and its students did their bit for the environment recently by teaming up with High Street retailer and national charity which encourage people to recycle, rather than dump, their unwanted clothes.
This article is connected to GCU London
Published Feb 22, 2013