Uniqlo launched the All-Product Recycling Initiative at its stores in the US, UK and France. British Radio 1 DJ and TV presenter Sara Cox announced its UK kick-off at the 311 Oxford Street Flagship Store yesterday at 9 am. Uniqlo UK partnered with the charity Centrepoint for the APR project and Sara, who has been involved with Centrepoint since 2000, joined to launch the initiative. 

From September 1, customers can visit all Uniqlo UK stores and donate their old Uniqlo items at any of the till points. Items will be sorted into men’s and women’s product categories and into wearable and unfit items. The unfit ones will be recycled into industrial fibres. Other pieces will be donated to Centrepoint where they will be distributed to the homeless young people it supports. Uniqlo’s staff will also take part in mentoring the young people of Centrepoint, as well as taking part in additional fundraising events throughout the year.

«I love Uniqlo so I know that the clothes recycled by customers will be massively appreciated by Centrepoint’s young people. It’s great that a brand I love and a charity I support are working together to help homeless young people,» said Sara Cox.

Uniqlo aims to collect 30 to 40 million articles of clothing within five years—at least one item for every displaced person in the world.

The company began its Fleece Recycling Campaign in Japan in September 2001 as part of its corporate social responsibility activities. In 2006, the project was expanded to include all Uniqlo products and titled the All-Product Recycling Initiative.  Uniqlo started to introduce the project globally in South Korea in March 2011.

In May, Uniqlo invited fashion designers to create a collection of T-shirts to help Japanese people that suffered from hurricane. Currently, Uniqlo is running the  Coca-Cola design competition.

Uniqlo has also just announced the relaunch and redesign of the global e-commerce website www.uniqlo.com on  September 7. The new website is aimed to give customers ‘a first class virtual shopping experience’, says the press release. In addition, the final Fall / Winer 11 +J collection will launch online first at 1 am on September 8.