This book chapter written by Kirsi Laitala, Ingun Grimstad Klepp, and Lisbeth Løvbak Berg is published in Recycling and Lifetime Management in the Textile and Fashion Sector, edited by Kirsi Niinimäki. It focuses on clothing lifespans and looks into how mode and volumes of acquisition impact the length of use. This is vital because reducing the environmental impact of clothing is dependent on a reduction of the produced volume.
Based on our scoping review and reanalysis of international wardrobe audit data, we find that the number of garments that are acquired has the most impact, making clothing utilization an important concept. Second-hand garments are used fewer times than new items, and gifts less than self-chosen items. Self-made clothing was worn less than tailored garments, showing that product personalisation can both shorten and increase lifetimes. Slowing down the rate of acquisition and increasing the lifetime with the first user should be the focus of policy development.
To read the full chapter, please contact the publisher of Recycling and Lifetime Management in the Textile and Fashion Sector.
Suggested citation: Laitala, K., Klepp, I. G., & Løvbak Berg, L. (2024). The impact of modes of acquisition on clothing lifetimes. In K. Niinimäki (Ed.), Recycling and Lifetime Management in the Textile and Fashion Sector (pp. 91-111). CRC Press, Boca Raton. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003044413-8