Where to donate clothes in Singapore – Aug 2021

Who cares about where to donate clothes in Singapore?

Can’t believe it’s already August 2021 and LSQ hasn’t posted anything all year! I decided to put together this list of places to donate clothes in Singapore specifically because I did a major declutter in the last couple of months and did plenty of research into this. I found out that probably because of Covid, many places listed online are either not accepting clothing donations at the moment or no longer accepting clothes at all.

Context: A recovering shopaholic

LSQ is a (hopefully) recovering shopaholic (might share this story another day) and I have so much clothes that my 2 full-sized wardrobes are perpetually bursting at their seams with clothes. :X I have always found it extremely difficult to part ways with clothes I no longer wear for all sorts of sentimental or hoarder-like reasons like “what if I need this top/dress/shorts/etc in future?”.

Come some time in early 202, as I continued to buy new clothes and they began to spill over in bags haphazardly around my bedroom and spare room, I decided to put my foot down and really gather clothes I 100% know I will never wear again. I ended up with 3 giant bags full of almost new / new clothes to get rid of.

Research into where to donate clothes in Singapore

I came across several lists like the following:

9 places to donate your used clothing in Singapore other than the Salvation Army – published in Feb 2021

Hari Raya 2021: 9 Places to Donate Clothes, Furniture in Singapore – published in May 2021

But found that specifically for clothes, several organizations commonly listed have put a pause to clothing donations (I will monitor this list periodically and update as and when they resume collections).

These organizations are currently NOT accepting clothing donations:

• Society of Saint Vincent de Paul / SSVP Shop
• Metta Welfare Association
• New2U thrift shop
• MINDS (the list of acceptable items URL is down)
• Red Cross

SO……Where to donate clothes in Singapore (updated as of Aug 2021) – chop + guarantee??

i. Threadlightly thrift store – any clothes in good condition (read this for criteria and more details)
This was the option LSQ went with after all my research because I really like what they do. Threadlightly is founded by a 21 yo gal entering university soon. On top of selling donated clothes, she also sells vintage pieces curated by herself as well as reworked items. The best thing is, she picks several beneficiaries every month to donate to.
Note: Threadlightly used to be a physical store in Queensway Shopping Centre but as of 11 Aug 2021, they have shifted online and you can schedule a slot for them to come to your place to pick up your clothing donations here. Visit them on instagram (@t.hreadlightly) too!

ii. Uniqlo – only used Uniqlo clothes
Uniqlo has a Re.Uniqlo program which collects used Uniqlo items in Re.Uniqlo boxes at all their SG stores to be reused (i.e. donated to the needy) or recycled.

iii. Salvation Army – any clothes in good condition
Good ol’ Salvation Army takes clothing donations all year long at their donation booths and thrift stores – list here.

iv. The Barn by Cornerstone Community Services – only men’s clothing at the moment
The Barn is a volunteer-run thrift shop that sells pre-loved goods like clothing, accessories, household appliances and other miscellaneous items. It aims to assist the poor and needy in the community by making consumer goods available to them at affordable prices. All stocks are donated by members of the public and they are currently only accepting men’s clothes.

Make an appointment at 96797379 and donate at any of their 3 stores listed here.
Or
Presto Laundry is also collecting clothes on their behalf from Apr 2021 and you can drop off your items at any of Presto’s 5 conveniently located outlets – read more here.

v. H&M – any clothes, any condition
H&M collects used clothing for the following:
· Rewear — clothing that can be worn again will be sold as second-hand clothes.
· Reuse — old clothes and textiles will be turned into other products, such as cleaning cloths.
· Recycle — everything else is turned into textile fibres and used for things like insulation.
Simply bag up your clothes and bring them down to any H&M stores in Singapore to drop off in designated recycling bins. These clothes can be from any brands / brandless and don’t have to be H&M items! For every bag of clothes (the bag can be any size!) you donate, you’ll get a 15% discount off your next item purchase.

vi. Zara – any clothes, any condition
Zara Joinlife collects pre-loved clothes in all Zara stores to either be donated or transformed into new fabrics and these will be marketed to finance social projects held by non-profit organizations. Same as H&M, simply bag up your clothes and bring them down to any Zara stores in Singapore to drop off in designated recycling bins. These clothes can be from any brands / brandless and don’t have to be Zara items.

vii. Wing Tai Retail (wt+ stores i.e. G2000, Fox, DPAM) – any clothes, any condition
Items collected will be sorted into reusable and recyclables – good quality clothing will be sold to thrift shops or 2nd-hand markets in developing countries. Garments that cannot be reused will be recycled and sold as industrial cleaning cloth. You will get a 5% wt+ voucher when you drop your garments off at any of the wt+ stores listed here
(excluding all departmental stores, sale outlet, pop-up stores and Cath Kidston stores).

viii. Greensquare – any clothes, any condition
Greensquare sorts out donated clothing items to either sell to developing countries or recycled as industrial cleaning cloth. For a minimum of 15kg of clothes, you can schedule a pick-up via https://www.greensquare.com.sg/collection or if you have less than 15kg, you may drop off your donations at any of these locations after 18 Aug 2021.

Bonus idea: Karung Guni or Rag-and-bone

Yes you read right, if you (and/or friends / family) are doing a major declutter together, you can consider consolidating your junk and selling them to a good ol’ Karung Guni or Rag-and-bone man! Only catch it, you will need a minimum of 800kg worth to sell – but good thing is, you can combine clothing items with old newspaper / paper items / books / cardboard to make up the 800 kg.
You can submit your items here for a quote and also to arrange for pick-up.

Before I wipe clean…………

No matter where you choose to donate your unwanted clothing to, please always wash them first. Unwashed clothes are just really gross and even if the items are going to be recycled, spare a thought for the staff / volunteers who have to sort through the donations manually.

Till the next time – LSQ promises to be more diligent in my posts! xoxo