There are a wardrobe of reasons to buy secondhand, Ruth Blunt writes.

 

When the nor’wester rips through Wānaka, you know spring is in the air. And with it, Secondhand September. Started by Oxfam in the UK to encourage people to pause new purchases for 30 days, the movement has since become a seasonal spotlight on the reuse economy and clearing out the clutter.

At Wastebusters we see the result of a good spring clean — seeing what people set free each spring tells you a lot about how strongly reuse sits in the community consciousness. That ethos is felt across the country. According to TradeMe’s Circular Economy Report 2026, 83% of us bought something secondhand, and almost 4 million pre-loved items were traded through the platform last year.

The report found rising cost of living is a key driver of reuse. Almost half of those surveyed said the cost of living had prompted them to look for more secondhand goods than previously and 67% said saving money was a key motivator. Two-thirds of their reuse market is in clothing, footwear and accessories. The findings track with the shift picked up in Kantar’s Better Futures recent report. Almost 90% of New Zealanders still think businesses should be held responsible for their environmental impact. The report also highlights a decline in tolerance for greenwashing. They want real sustainable options without the price premium. Young Kiwis are the quickest to notice when a business’ actions don’t match its rhetoric, and to have the deepest concern over the high cost of living.

Secondhand bridges this tension between cost of living and consumption. Where “new and cheap” usually means corners are cut somewhere along the production line —  in materials, in wages, in environmental cost —  secondhand sidesteps that trade off entirely.

While people rethink their purchasing habits, the strong pull to spring clean as the seasons change traditionally triggers an influx of donations to reuse shops. That ritual of standing in front of your wardrobe and asking “do I even like wearing it?”.

Most of us are not great at letting go of our things, even when we’ve outgrown them (in size, style, circumstance). There’s a name for this reluctance. Coined in the 1980s, the endowment effect describes how the value we give things we buy is stronger than the desire to purchase the thing in the first place. It’s not really about the item, it’s our brain’s hardwired tendency to feel the pain of losing something roughly twice as intensely as the pleasure of gaining it. It can keep us attached to things we have no use for.

Twice a year, I audit my children’s wardrobe. As growing boys, the size shuffle from big kid to smaller kids is constant. When I ask for any item, “do you like it?”, their response is instant. Unburdened by the cost of acquisition, they can answer honestly and confidently. I love that certainty. It’s decluttering at its finest.

This spring, if you too are pulled to de-clutter your wardrobe, you may hear your subconscious calling, so take your time. At Wastebusters, we’ve created a simple wardrobe audit that lets you reclaim some space, let go of what you don’t love and maybe even discover your own style. We start one drawer or category at a time and sort into piles: love it, repair it, store it for next season or set it free. It’s your wardrobe audit so if you need a sit on the fence pile, do just that. The hesitancy is probably your subconscious.

Setting something free often means donating it to a secondhand store. Just as often you might come across something in the back of your wardrobe so well-loved it has reached the end of the line. For those pieces, as much as we once loved them, your options are to upcycle, compost (the natural fibres) or throw them out.

A good donation is the cornerstone of the secondhand experience. What we don’t donate is just as important as what we do. Sometimes it’s not so clear cut, like the pieces we hold on to in the “sit on the fence” pile. If you have an item you’re not sure about donating, ask yourself ‘would I buy this? Would I give it to a friend?’ That will usually give you a good steer as you tackle the cobwebs, the clutter and (perhaps) the chaos this September.

Ruth Blunt is communications manager at Wastebusters. Each week in this column writers address issues of sustainability.