There are now so many places to look for second-hand items that it’s often overwhelming. Where to go when you want to save both money and the planet with one conscience consumer decision?
Meet Jo, our founder, and find out why she started Rumage.com.
I started Rumage.com on my kitchen table back in 2019 because I believe in going second-hand first and I want others to be able to do so too.
It’s not just to save money (although that’s super important) it’s an environmental choice. We throw away so much. Many are perfectly good things, things that can be fixed up, revamped, given a new lease of life. It all goes into landfill. Which means new things have to be made. This means more resources used and more shipping of goods around the world, more carbon burned.
And to drive the price of new things down, well we all know things don’t last like they used to – the business model needs us to keep buying. There’s a whole issue about where and by who and under what conditions they are being made. It’s an uncomfortable truth.
Rumage is here to make choosing second hand easier.
The planet is now unable to cope with our disposable lifestyle. If action isn’t taken then ¼ of our total impact on climate change will be due to just clothes consumption by 2050 (Harrabin 2018). A staggering 22 million items of furniture end up in landfill every year in the UK.
If we can get more people to buy second hand first, simply by making it easier, then I’ve done my bit. And if people feel proud to buy second hand – clothes, bikes, tools, furniture – because it’s the savvy thing to do, and savvy environmentally, then we can really change things. Then buying second hand is a badge of honour. And a duty.
I always try to shop second-hand. In the states we have a Buy Nothing group on fb to ask for things we need, or things we want to give away. Amazing the things we can get. Our landfill also has a free store.