Marks & Spencer announced today that it is launching a dedicated clothing repair service for the first time.
The initiative, which aims to give clothing items another life, is launching in August and forms part of Marks & Spencer’s circular-economy initiative, Plan A.
New insight from M&S has revealed that just 10% of the population is confident enough to repair clothing themselves.
It also found that 60% of consumers are looking for retailers to offer more services that support a lower carbon footprint.
These insights led to M&S partnering with clothing repair and alterations expert SOJO.
Founded in 2021 by Josephine Philips, SOJO is on a mission to make tailoring and repairs more accessible.
According to WRAP, the climate action NGO, 1.6 billion items of clothing in UK wardrobes – an average of 38 items per person – are not being worn.
The M&S Fixed by SOJO hub – launching in August – will support M&S customers and allow them to give their clothes ‘another life’ and reduce waste.
This will be part of the retailer’s Plan A road map to drive the circular economy.
The partnership builds on M&S’s established clothes donation scheme with Oxfam, which has collected over 36 million items of clothing and raised an estimated £23 million to tackle poverty around the world.
Through a dedicated online hub, M&S customers will be able to select and book a range of bespoke repair services through simple online forms.
With repairs starting from £5, M&S clothing can be sent, repaired by SOJO’s in-house team, and returned to the customer’s doorstep within seven to ten days.
‘Give Their Clothes Another Life’
Speaking about the new scheme, the managing director of clothing and home at M&S, Richard Price, said, “At M&S, exceptional-quality products are at the heart of everything we do, and we want to ensure that all our clothes are too good to waste.
“Through the launch of our repair service, we’re making it even easier for customers to give their clothes another life, whether they are using our new repair service or long-standing clothes-recycling scheme.”
SOJO founder and chief executive Philips added, “It has always been a core mission of ours at SOJO to make repairing clothes mainstream and to extend the life of as many garments as possible.
“I’m so excited that M&S has chosen to launch their repair service with us at SOJO, as it’s an incredibly big step towards that mission.
“As a brand that has remained a firm constant in almost every household and wardrobe in Britain, this partnership will truly bring easy, accessible and convenient repairs to the masses.
“Beyond that, as one of the longest-standing British brands, having M&S join our Pledge to Repair adds such a great weight to our call for industry-wide change here in the UK.”
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