What's The Big Shwop all about?

The Big Shwop brings together people and their wardrobes for an afternoon of shopping - shopping that doesn't make a dent on your bank account or your conscience.

The idea is a simple one - you bring along your unwanted, barely worn quality clothes and exchange them for vouchers.

When the shwop begins, you can 'cash in' your vouchers for any of the other lovely threads on offer. Guilt free shopping straight ahead!

What will happen at The Big Shwop?

People bring in their clothes from 10- 12pm. For each item of clothing suitable for the shwop (see below 'What do I bring to The Big Shwop?) you will receive a voucher. We only accept well-made, stylish clothes in excellent condition. We keep it simple - one accepted item is worth one voucher. 

Make sure you bring in your threads to be dropped off in time, because from 12-1pm, the shwop room will be closed. We'll be sorting the clothes onto racks and into sizes.

At 1pm The Big Shwop will begin. You can use your vouchers in exchange for any item in the Shwop. Simple - a fresh new wardrobe straight ahead!

What do I bring to The Big Shwop?

• It is important that everyone brings in quality items of clothing so that we all get to take home new pieces of great clothing too. We try to create a "Fashion Store without the Money". The Big Shwop is distinctive from other events because its all about redistributing quality clothing that we no longer wear.
• Shwop volunteers 'vet' the clothes you will bring in for The Big Shwop. All clothing to be shwopped needs to be in really good condition. Of course, clothing should have no marks, missing buttons, no pills or pulls, no rips or broken zips. Our volunteers reserve the right to refuse clothes for The Big Shwop.
• Remember, The Big Shwop is not a dumping ground. Just donate your tired pieces of clothing to an opshop.

Why shwop?

Shwopping is a sustainable way to shop. We can all look good and be kind to the earth too and that is what shwopping is all about.

You see, most of the chain store clothing for sale here has been made with little respect for the environment, the community they are made in or for the people who make them.

If you want more details about the fashion industry - what's cool for our planet and what's not, check out our blog. Here you can learn a bit more about us and a bit more about shwopping too.

Thankfully, there are two things that we can do to make a real difference:

• Buy New Zealand made and ethically-made fashion when we buy things new.
• Reuse and recycle our clothes as much as possible. The Big Shwop is all about making the most of what we already have.

So many of us have wardrobes brimming with clothes that are desperate to be shwopped. It might be something you bought and then never wore. Perhaps you have worn it, but it still looks mint. Perhaps you have some impulse buys or some sale purchases that just weren't 'you.' Perhaps it doesn't fit properly anymore. For whatever reason, all of these clothes must be shwopped. Be brave! If you aren't wearing some cool threads that are in your wardrobe, let someone else enjoy them!

Fine print

• If you don't use all your vouchers up, you can't ask for the clothes you bought in back. Sorry.
• The Big Shwop is a future focused event. At the end of the shwop, all the un-shwopped clothes will be donated to some great causes to share the love even further.

See you there! Sarah, Chrissy, Inga and The Big Shwop crew.