The fashion industry is, except for the oil industry, the most polluting chain in the world. People buy 60% more clothing than fifteen years ago and wear those items half as long. In fact: 70% of a wardrobe remains unworn and 33% of women wear clothing less than five times.

This worries The Next Closet. In particular, when thinking of the harmful substances in the production process, the scarcity of raw materials, fast fashion brands that are constantly growing, the poor working conditions and the enormous ecological footprint that people leave behind. The Next Closet’s mission is to change the textile industry by inspiring people to invest in quality and reuse what they already have.

In 2013, Lieke Pijpers and Thalita van Ogtrop founded The Next Closet: a circular marketplace for second hand designer fashion in the Benelux countries. Together with their team in the city centre of Amsterdam, they are innovating the second hand clothing market via technology.

Through the Next Closet webpage, those selling their designer items can earn money while doing good by reducing consumption of new clothes.