‘Circular Economy’ movement making waves at centre:mk

The circular economy movement – which involves reusing, repairing, refurbishing and recycling existing materials for as long as possible – is making waves at the top 10 shopping destination; centre:mk.

This Spring, centre:mk will be hosting two huge pop-up events with a focus on sustainability; including the incredibly popular Spring edition of ‘MK Handmade & Vintage’ – one of ‘the best vintage bazaars in the UK’ – with over 100 pop-up stalls showcasing things you won’t usually find on the high street, preceded by pre-loved fashion pop-up event; ‘We Are – Second Life Fashion’ also in Middleton Hall, which will take place this weekend; 16th – 18th February. The events are all part of the shopping centre’s drive to promote sustainability within the retail sector to it’s shoppers.

With the pre-loved fashion industry growing rapidly – seeing 60% of Brits buying second hand items in the last year*, centre:mk are meeting an expanding consumer demand for these types of events, alongside their high-street retailers, many of whom have significantly upped their own sustainability initiatives in recent years. The likes of John Lewis and Partners and Primark both have clothes recycling schemes and many beauty retailers including H beauty, Boots and Superdrug have collection points to recycle beauty product and makeup packaging, which can be harder to recycle at home.

The pop-up second hand clothing event happening this weekend, is produced by ‘We Are. Second Life Fashion’ who run large scale vintage kilo sales across the country, providing a mix of high quality second-hand garments as well as a popular ‘Gold Area’ of designer brands. Over the past 3 years alone, more than half a million items sold have been diverted from going to landfill.

Kevin Duffy, Centre Director said, “It’s becoming ever more apparent that we all need to play our part in making the world a more sustainable place, and hosting events such as these, which promotes the circular economy, fit perfectly with our own sustainability commitments and initiatives. Centre:mk is pioneering in sustainability initiatives in our sector and we have won many awards for our efforts. We’re so proud to have the first carbon neutralizing roof in the UK, to recycle an incredible 1350 tonnes of waste each year, 22% of which is converted into renewable energy, as well as introducing a bee hive to our green roof in 2023.” To find out more about centre:mks’ initiatives visit: https://www.centremk.com/community-and-environment

We are Second Life Fashion

· Friday 16th: 09:00 – 20:00, Saturday 17th: 09:00 – 19:00, Sunday 18th: 11:00 – 17:00.

· Free to attend.

· Middleton Hall, centre:mk.

· Further information; CENTREMK.COM/WHATSON

MK Handmade & Vintage

· Saturday 2nd March: 9am – 6pm

· Sunday 3rd: 10:30am – 5pm

· With over 100 pop-up stalls showcasing high-quality goods ‘not on the high street’

· Free entry

· Middleton Hall.

*Statista.com