From backyard markets to festival halls, circular fashion is proving it’s more than a trend, it’s bringing people together reshaping how clothes are bought, worn, and shared.
In a Mount Lawley front garden, a rack of second-hand clothes is sparking a quiet, cultural revolution against fast fashion.
What looks like a simple street sale is part of a growing movement; a push to rethink clothing’s value and extend its life beyond the first owner.
Australians purchase an average of 34kg of clothing per person each year, discarding around 31kg to landfill.
Initiatives like this thrift market pop-up are emerging across Perth, challenging the wastefulness of fast fashion, inspiring consumers to consider how they buy, wear, and share clothes.
For Tamsin Elder, one of five local advocates behind this Mount Lawley pop-up, thrifting is about more than affordability, it’s a statement about sustainability.
“It’s really important to us to advocate for circular fashion because, as everyone knows, there’s already enough clothing on this planet to clothe the next five generations.”
Tamsin says the approach is designed to feel welcoming, affordable and community oriented.
“It feels more like a giant closet swap […] very girlhood, very community-driven and really about sharing.”
Beyond making fashion accessible, the advocates also stress the importance of education.
“Low-consumption fashion is essential, especially given how unethical a lot of big brands are […] education is so important.”
“Empowering the next generation to develop their own style rather than being told what’s cool by fast fashion brands,” Tamsin said.
These intimate, street-level initiatives are now extending to larger, city-wide efforts.
Charlie Smith, a Perth-based sustainable fashion advocate and co-founder of the upcoming Circular Fashion Festival, says the event aims to unite industry with everyday shoppers.
“Circular Fashion Festival is the meeting ground […] where industry meets people who didn’t think they would be people that would go to the op shop or shop pre-loved.”
Charlie describes circular fashion as more than second-hand clothing and believes such events can make sustainable fashion appealing to more audiences.
She says if more people started buying only the clothing they absolutely needed and purchased more pre-loved items, things would change.
“Those little micro adjustments become patterns, they become a lifestyle, and that lifestyle, if adopted by enough people, can make change.
“Once you know what it means to be a part of the circular economy, once you have that beautiful skirt that you found at the market hanging in your closet […] that unforgettable experience [can change someone’s] mindset.”
As Perth prepares for the first Circular Fashion Festival on October 10 and 11, both organisers and advocates say the message remains the same; rethink, reuse, and reconnect.
