Fashion Revolution Week 2023

The 22nd to the 29th of April 2023 is Fashion Revolution Week. This year, Fashion Revolution Week marks 10 years since Rana Plaza - the tragedy that inspired the Fashion Revolution movement.  

On the 24th of April 2013, the Rana Plaza garment-factory building in Bangladesh collapsed, killing over 1,100 people and injuring another 2,500. This disaster brought international attention to not only the poor working conditions of garment workers in Bangladesh, but also wider issues with the global fashion industry. From poor working conditions to unliveable wages to unsustainable and environmentally destructive manufacturing processes, these issues made it very clear that the world seriously needed a Fashion Revolution.  

In the 10 years since the Rana Plaza disaster, a lot of progress has been made towards revolutionising the way we design, manufacture, wear, and discard our clothes. Perhaps one of the most significant and important aspects of this has been a greater, more widespread awareness of the negative impacts of the (fast) fashion industry and how all of us can commit to making a difference. We see this everyday at Salvos Stores, as more and more Australians make the effort to shop secondhand or give their preloved clothes a second life by donating them to us.  

However, whilst there is a lot of positive change to celebrate, in many ways we are still behind where we need to be if we truly want to create a Fashion Revolution. This is why the 2023 Fashion Revolution Week theme is ‘Manifesto for a Fashion Revolution’. Fashion Revolution created its 10-point ‘manifesto’ for a fashion revolution back in 2018. It includes commitments for the fashion industry such as respecting culture and heritage, paying workers fairly and equally, conserving the environment, and avoiding unnecessary destruction or discarding of products or materials. By bringing focus back to this manifesto 5 years after it was created, and 10 years after Rana Plaza, the Fashion Revolution movement reminds us that we still have a long way to go. It also emphasises that Fashion Revolution Week is not just about broadcasting what we’ve already done, but re-committing to doing more.  

This Fashion Revolution Week, we at Salvos Stores are committing to both continue the work that we’ve been doing for decades that aligns with the Fashion Revolution Manifesto, and reflect on how we could be taking more action to make sure that our organisation is fulfilling all ten of its points.  

As a secondhand retailer, our greatest and most important contributions to the Fashion Revolution concern Point 6: Fashion Conserves and Restores the Environment and Point 7: Fashion Never Unnecessarily Destroys or Discards but Mindfully Redesigns and Recuperates in a Circular Way. Every year with the help of our customers and their donations, we keep over 40 million preloved items in circulation through our network of stores. That’s 40 million items a year that are being saved from landfill, prevented from causing environmental harm, and given new lives in the circular economy. As an organisation, we have always been committed to circular economy thinking - you can read more about our century-old circular economy story here. Nevertheless, we are always looking for ways to take this further. To this end, we have recently appointed Aife O’Loughlin as our Senior Manager - Circular Economy to drive and expand our work in this area.  

Whilst keeping items out of landfill and curbing the environmental impact of fashion by supporting the circular economy are how we most enact the Fashion Revolution Manifesto, we are committed to doing our part towards its non-environmental points as well. For example, at Salvos Stores we are always working to incorporate diversity and inclusivity into all levels and actions of our organisation, from our store teams to our social media presence.   

At Salvos, we recognise that to be truly committed to a Fashion Revolution, we have to make sure that we’re aligned with all of its principles - we can’t pick and choose. So, this Fashion Revolution Week we will be reflecting on both how far we’ve come over the last decade, and where we might be falling short. We encourage you to do the same.  

To learn more about Fashion Revolution and sign your name to the Manifesto for a Fashion Revolution, click here.