Loopster: Where quality kids clothes live on
Loopster is challenging the throw away fashion culture by making it easier for people to buy second hand clothing. They are closing the loop between the use and reuse of clothing, which reduces the CO2 and water footprint of clothes. Loopster is looking to connect with individuals in the fashion industry.
Our interview with Jane, the Founder of Loopster
Describe your mission in a sentence or two
Fashion is one of the planet’s most polluting industries. Our mission is to change that by making shopping second hand and more sustainably easier.
We are revolutionising the resale model for second hand clothes so that is quicker and more convenient for customers than the current peer to peer options.
Who are your clients?
Our customer base is parents and grandparents as we are currently focused on selling children’s clothes. We are a managed marketplace so we both buy and sell to our customers.
What is your business model? (in particular talking about how you marry profit and purpose)
For sellers, they simply fill a prepaid Loopy Clear Out Bag with their discarded clothes and we pay them upfront for everything we accept. For shoppers we offer clearly photographed, quality brands at bargain prices. The convenience of Loopster incentivises customers to be more sustainable.
Purpose is at the core of our business model which is to close the loop between the use and reuse of clothes. Extending the life of a child’s T-shirt by just nine months will reduce its CO2 and water footprint by 20-30%.
Most of the clothes we reject are donated to our charity partner Traid, who sell them and use the proceeds to fund international development projects to improve conditions and working practices in the textile industry.
What does "Impact" mean to you as a profit-driven company?
It means the amount of clothes we have extended the life of and reduced their CO2 and water footprint and the amount of clothes we have diverted from landfill. By July 2019 we had donated to Traid over half a tonne of unwanted clothes and shoes diverting them from landfill and reducing their carbon emissions (CO2) by 5.3 tonnes and resulting in a water saving of 900 m3.
We also have an impact offering parent’s quality clothing at a fraction of High Street prices.
What are the metrics you will use to track/measure your impact?
Traid measure how much we donate to them and the consequent reduction in carbon emissions and water saving.
Loopster will develop a methodology so we can more exactly measure the amount of CO2 reduction and water saving we are creating through selling second hand clothes and extending their life.
What is the vision for the company?
We want to become the British household name for quality second hand children’s and women’s clothes that can be bought conveniently and at fantastic prices.
What other UK impactful startup do you love and why?
I love Mush the app which encourages mums to connect with each other.
I remember only too vividly when I first became a mum, and stopped working in the fast-paced environment of TV, that it was an extreme change and at times a lonely experience.
I admire how brilliant Mush has scaled and in three years it has built over 500,000 members showing it is fulfilling a real need. Sadly, I had my son before Mush existed, but if it had been around I would have definitely been an avid user!
What’s next for your company?
We need to complete our early seed round and then we are set to develop our tech and scale. We want to increase the depth of inventory of childrenswear and move into womenswear, particularly mid-range clothes.
How can the SeedTribe community be involved in helping you scale your impact?
Beyond investing - we are looking for contacts within the fashion industry to discuss potential partnerships.
To contact Jane, send us an email and we will put you in touch.