Every September, Oxford-originated charity Oxfam runs a huge campaign encouraging as many people as possible to embrace secondhand. Whether it’s clothing, tech, craft supplies or plants, there are loads of resources to support your efforts to access this win-win-win system of acquiring new (to you) stuff. Why win-win-win? Well, in Oxfam’s own words, it’s your opportunity to ‘take a stance against fast fashion and dress for a fairer world’. There are some eye-watering figures on how bad fast fashion is for human rights and the environment on the campaign’s website and lots of deep dives on ethicalconsumer.com. But from a selfish standpoint, we also think shopping secondhand tends to be way more rewarding and fun: it’s much easier to find unusual or one-off items to help you stand out from the crowd compared to the high street offerings, and (on a like-for-like basis) it’s generally cheaper. While charity shops are getting a lot more savvy about pricing with designer items, they still tend to offer a lot to bargain hunters and magpies. Plus, your money supports good causes rather than lining another squillionaire’s pockets…
Part One of this two-part blog features events and opportunities in Oxfordshire this month and year-round, while Part Two (out later in the month) promises a wealth of handy hints and tips for getting the most out of your secondhand shopping experience, so keep your eyes peeled!
Make a Day of It
If you’re looking to kick a fast fashion habit, then turning shopping into a special occasion will help with the delayed gratification. As a bonus, stock at one-off sales tend to be cheaper than bricks-and-mortar shops because they have lower overheads for vendors. The Old Schoolhouse Community Day on 14th September will really be bringing the party atmosphere with a barbecue, local bands, and kids’ activities running alongside their community stalls. Be sure not to miss the @anna_d_creates Preloved stall which promises hand-knitted gifts and peat free houseplants in addition to a glut of secondhand clothing.
Oxford Town Hall also regularly turns into a festive haven for shoppers, with two popular events regularly returning to the venue. The Worth the Weight Kilo Vintage Sale is next on Sunday 22nd September and is not to be missed. There’s a huge range of all types of clothing for all genders, and it’s a weigh and pay system (like pick-your-own fruit, but with vintage fashion) where they charge £20 per kilo - and you’d be surprised just how many vintage garments fit into that kilo! They also cap heavier items like coats and ballgowns at £20 so it’s the perfect place to prepare for Christmas party season without breaking the bank. Oxford Craft & Flea will take up residence at the Town Hall the following week (29th Sep) with lots of vintage bric-a-brac to be found amongst handcrafted gifts from local artisans.
For a really special celebration of all things slow fashion, Cherwell Collective are hosting a Fashion Show at Blenheim Palace on 24th September, showcasing designers of upcycled clothing and higher-end secondhand boutiques in spectacular surroundings. As a launch for their Carbon Cost of Fashion exhibition, it promises to be an occasion to remember, with an award ceremony for the designers and an auction of the runway pieces. Indulge your inner Anna Wintour while supporting a great local cause and contributing to clothing’s sustainable future!
Charity (shopping) starts at home
Ever since the lockdowns, online secondhand sales have been booming. Whether you are less able to go physically shopping or are just too busy, the internet allows you to access all the benefits of sustainable shopping without leaving your home. Daily Info’s own For Sale pages offer free local listings for everything from clothing and homeware to cars and boats! Meanwhile, Facebook is home to its own marketplace (although watch out for scammers: unlike here at DI, listings are not checked before they go up) but the real value of the social network is in the number of hyper-local secondhand groups. In addition to groups specific to your area of the city or county (e.g. Didcot Selling Group, Bicester Bargains, there’s Oxford Plant Swap for free and cheap houseplants and Oxford Craft Swap for arts and craft materials. So whatever your hobby, it’s possible to indulge in all the kit you need without heading over to a certain tax-evading yellow website…
If it’s electronics you’re after, consider buying refurbished instead of new. Smartphones and laptops all require the use of metals and other minerals connected to a horrifying gamut of ecological and human rights disasters. CEX specialises in refurbished tech and most of their gadgets come with a 2 year warranty (buying new from Apple, for example, you’d only get 1 year!) - in addition to their online presence they have physical stores in Cowley and Banbury. Similarly, ebay now offer certification for refurbished items, so you can buy tech there with the peace of mind that it has been professionally checked. Just include ‘refurbished’ in your search filters.
Although it’s not a local website, I would be remiss not to mention (okay, wax lyrical about) Vinted. The reselling app is popular with both buyers and sellers because of the levels of guarantee it offers (you can only pay through the app so there’s far less chance of getting scammed, and they enforce rules about listing accuracy so refunds are possible if you’re not happy). Clothing tends to be cheaper than charity shops - often sellers are just keen to get rid of stuff and so open to haggling - though beware of postage costs and the added-on security fee. You can get more value from Vinted by buying multiple items from the same seller (known as bundles) to save money on postage and packaging.
Shops and regular events
Like any city worth the name, Oxford is home to dozens of charity shops, offering a great alternative to high street shopping. Check out our directory to find your nearest one, or spoil yourself for choice by just heading straight to Oxfam’s Superstore in Cowley. Thanks to our large student population, the city also boasts a number of decent vintage boutiques, like Ballroom Emporium on the Plain roundabout, The Retro Room on St. Clements, and Unicorn on Ship Street. Vintage addicts can also get weekly fix at Gloucester Green Market which hosts vintage stalls among its regular traders. And if it’s books you’re after, in addition to vast book sections in lots of the charity shops, see our Bookshops Guide which includes a number of secondhand bookshops. For hardcore bargain hunters, Oxfordshire has a wealth of regular car boot sales throughout the county (see https://www.facebook.com/OxfordshireBootsCo), including the famous weekly Kassam Stadium car boot (every Sunday from 7am). These tend to be for early birds but if you, like this author, can’t do without your weekend lie-ins, Witney and Berinsfield’s sales have a more civilised start time of midday.