What sparked from a conversation between two Nottinghamshire mums has turned into something financially viable and fun. Instead of throwing clothes out, why not give them away because ‘second hand isn’t second best’ - that's their ethos.
Friends Nicolette Bosworth and Georgina Hadjigeorgiou have worked together for years. Wanting to reduce landfill and have a space where parents and carers can gather to save ‘a bit of extra cash’, they have created the Little Peas Clothes Swap Shop.
With a sold-out event in Burton Joyce that was ‘chilled’ and ‘friendly’, with sweet treats up for grabs, the next swap is very soon. It’s a chance to meet people in the area and, of course, take clothes home for your children. Nicolette spoke more about the new venture.
Are you planning an event for King Charles III’s Coronation? Let us know here
She said: “Georgie and I have worked together all our careers since our 20s and then in our 30s we had kids.
“We were passing loads of children's clothes between each other and they still had loads of life in them so we decided to develop Little Peas Clothes Swap Shop. We had been to a few adults' ones together, and we came up with the idea and decided to give it a go.”
Nicolette, who lives in Ruddington, added: “Our ethos is we want to prolong the life cycle of children’s clothing. We were really conscious of the environment and didn’t think it was ethical to buy all of this fast fashion.
“In our head, if you swap and don’t shop you have a bit of extra cash to do things with your kids - it's all financially really tough at the minute and, clothes for a two-year-old, it can cost 30 quid.”
Both Nicolette and Georgina, who work for their local council, make sure people leave with a gift for themselves and a child as part of the swap shop idea. When researching the concept, the pair found more 300,000 items of clothing go to landfill each year. At the Little Peas Clothes Swap Shop, you donate 10 items and take 10, so long as the clothes are undamaged.
Anything that isn’t taken at the swap is donated to Sharewear, a charity offering free-of-charge clothing choices to people in economic difficulty. Nicolette added: “On the night we try to create a really chilled out vibe, there’s music, our mums do all home-made baking for us.
"You get Pimm's on arrival or a nice coffee and we just wanted a place where parents and carers can chill out for a while and it not cost them the earth and they can sit down and meet others in the area.
“We also give a gift for the adult and the child. We had this real thing that second hand clothing had a bit of a negative vibe about with people thinking ‘I don’t really want to put my kids in second hand clothes’ but a lot of the things are brand new with the tags on. Stuff that is second hand, isn’t second best.”
Georgina, who is from Burton Joyce, said: "The lead up to the event was frantic and I was hit with nerves about it all. I felt like a little girl worried about who would turn up to her party! However, the event went really well and I managed to enjoy the evening.
"The support we have received has been amazing with people travelling from Derbyshire and Melton. The quality of garments being donated has been superb, and on the night everyone went home with some beautiful items. The cakes went down a treat, too."
Tickets for the upcoming event are £12 and you can get them here.
READ NEXT:
Inspector warns students to secure accommodation after rise in burglaries
Neighbours shocked after man found stabbed in 'nice little town'
How empty Nottingham high street has transformed into a 'cool and fresh' destination
11-minute exercise that cuts risks of stroke, cancer and heart disease, say scientists
