Buy what you love, Don’t be trend-led – Top tips from The Sustainable Conversation

Posted: 03.12.25

The podcast wraps up its third season with a discussion on reusing outfits, what thrifting means and different ways we can be sustainable. This podcast is hosted by Salvation Army Trading Company Ltd (SATCoL).

Thank you to everyone who listened, watched and engaged with the podcast. Series one and two saw a total of 1.37 million streams combined and series 3 is forecasted to reach 1.5 million streams within a year.

We began this series discussing sustainable shopping through buying less and mending/upcycling more. Through the series, guests covered the topics of second-hand fashion, repairing & upcycling clothes, ethical manufacturing and more. The series now closes with Great British Bake Off runner up Crystelle Pereira and DJ, Olivia Cox discussing thrifting and alternative ways to be sustainable with host Naomi May.

“Always have an idea in mind of what you want because then you can end up impulse buying or impulse raiding… so if you've got an event thinking ‘okay what do I need or what can I add to my outfit?’ then just look for that specific thing and more often than not that thing is there.” - Crystelle

When asked what thrifting means to them, Crystelle and Olivia have different takes. Crystelle begins: “Thrifting is a bit of a grey term because for me, thrifting also means just raiding my family's wardrobe… I will sometimes look at old photos of my mum and I'll say, ’Mum, this outfit is so cool. Where is it?’ And then I'll raid her wardrobe...” However, Olivia thrifts in a modern yet classic way: “…I buy quite a lot of second-hand clothes, which is so much more accessible now and accepted with Reselfridges or Vinted or anything like that, and I too do delve into my mother and sister's wardrobe.” These are a few ways to start your sustainable wardrobe. If you’re initially unsure about purchasing second hand, try looking at your family and friends’ wardrobes and give new life to pre-loved products.

Being sustainable isn’t only about the products that you buy but also about how they are produced and whether the brand aligns with your morals. This is the case for Olivia as she says, “the more transparent a brand is about their processes and their policy the better and the more likely it is then that it's going to align with my own personal beliefs, values and standards.” When selecting products sustainably, you should consider how ethical the brands are as the processes used will also affect the environment.

Clothes can be recycled or reused in many ways. Olivia continued “…I will go into my wardrobe and pull things out and get together a few bags of clothes that I'm ready to donate… On one of my raids, I have a textile bank near me, I donated to SATCoL...”

Alternatively, if you know that you’re buying clothes that you’ll only use once for a special occasion, follow in Crystelle’s footsteps and rent the outfit for the day “I have rented clothes quite a few times because I have lots of friends and they'll do these lavish Indian weddings and for that you need the specific type of traditional wear that I don't really wear. I think instead of me buying outfits for all these weddings that I'll wear once and never wear again, you can rent them...” Doing this reduces mass consumerism as one outfit can be used by more people.

“Buy what you love. Don't be trend-led. Buy something that brings you happiness, joy, love, pleasure and keep it and wear it” - Olivia

Episode 6 of The Sustainable Conversation podcast is available now on all major streaming platforms including Spotify, Apple Podcasts and SATCoL TV (www.satcol.org/satcol-tv).

Tune in to learn more about upcycling, sustainable fashion, and expert advice.

You can also watch this and catch up with previous episodes on YouTube.