Ojai is a town that patently prides itself on defending Mother Nature. Yet, during this most intoxicating holiday season, hardly anyone is immune to the notion of “more is more,” especially as society pressures us to have the latest and greatest updated items.
Be that as it may, that cultural push toward infinite newness, ironically, is setting the planet back in terms of environmental impacts — right down to our clothes.
Thanks to its locally minded business practices, the Ojai Valley is a hub for environmentally friendly holiday clothes-shopping, with several secondhand boutiques selling vintage and one-of-a-kind economical treasures that easily regain new life via upcycling.
A September 2019 report from The World Bank, called “How Much Do Our Wardrobes Cost to the Environment?” read: “In 2000, 50 billion new garments were made; nearly 20 years later, that figure has doubled, according to the Ellen MacArthur
Foundation. … The average person today buys 60% more clothing than in 2000, the data show. And not only do they buy more, they also discard more as a result. Less than 1% of used clothing is recycled into new garments.”
Another report from Planet Aid, Inc., gives “5 Reasons to Recycle Your Clothes.” One reason: “Recycling 100 million pounds of clothes has an effect on the environment equivalent to removing 26,000–35,000 cars from the road.”
“Recently, we’ve been working with local sewing design gurus to take vintage fabric I’ve sourced, vintage pieces needing
‘creative mending’ to upcycle, or damaged donation textiles to upcycle into new statement pieces,” said Meghann Haven, owner of Gratitude Vintage & Thrift, which opened in January 2020.
Haven landed in the secondhand-storefront sector after ending a big-city career, seeking to “recalibrate and find a way to build a life focused on giving back and protecting the planet.” She felt the call to build her own shop through an inspiring stint working in a friend’s mobile vintage-boutique truck.
Photos submitted
Gratitude Thrift & Vintage, 106 Park Road; Willow – Select Consignment, 307 E. Matilija St.
“I’d been working briefly in eComm selling high-end upcycled and vintage goods and was stunned as I learned more about the poor labor practices and devastating environmental impact fast fashion was creating,” Haven said. “We began going to estate sales and flea markets with a different reseller lens and looked for small businesses for sale around Southern California. Pretty quickly, we found Phyllis Schaller, the previous owner (New 2 You). We loved her immediately…Phyllis had structured the business impressively to have multiple donation ‘pipelines’ channeling goods that couldn’t be sold in store to those in need in the community (e.g., Ojai Valley Family Shelter and Ventura Humane Society).
“Every practice was a minimal-waste approach and the creative recycling opportunities were endless. The transition was made so easy by Phyllis and the community was immediately welcoming, so we expressed our gratitude to everyone in our name, Gratitude Vintage & Thrift.”
A vintage-clothing mainstay in the valley, The Lennon Closet opened in 2009 and is owned by the multi-generational Lennon family of Ojai. The Lennon Closet team agreed that Ojai residents “have always been environmentally aware. By consigning and recycling clothing we help diminish forces that contribute to climate change, and save millions of pounds of CO2 from entering our atmosphere each year,” said Monika Farmer, manager of The Lennon Closet.
Willow – Select Consignment is the newest on the scene, having opened in February. Michelle Byrnes, Willow’s owner, said: “I think secondhand shopping is important globally! We are a culture who has become accustomed to conveniences. These conveniences have contributed to much of our problems with toxicants in our environment. While clothing manufacturing is just one contributing factor to the pollution that is making our air and soils sick, it is contributing.
“There’s nothing wrong with buying a beautiful, newly made garment. In fact, we can support small business and creativity by doing so, but fast fashion is a problem, and a waste. The hope is that we learn who and how to support. Small changes can have a big impact.
“If our little town, Ojai, can help contribute by recycling and reusing perfectly good items, we’re doing our part.”
