If clothes swaps have traditionally been about bobbly jumpers and past-it denim, the format was certainly elevated last week. The Absolut Swap Shop opened in London with rooms full of preloved and “deadstock” clothing (clothes that were never sold in the first place) chosen by sustainability influencer Venetia La Manna, body positivity campaigner Nyome Nicholas-Williams and Harry Lambert, the celebrity stylist who works with Harry Styles, Emma Corrin and Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Between them, they have nearly a million Instagram followers. The sold-out event gave shoppers the chance to swap anything from their wardrobe for secondhand clothing.
Lambert says the event appealed to him because he has recently changed how he thinks about fashion. “When I was younger, I’d buy stuff and wear it a few times and I would throw it away,” he says. Now he says he is trying to put himself on a more sustainable path and he hopes the Swap Shop will encourage others to do the same.
