Opinion | Marie Kondo sparked a decluttering revolution – what happens to all the discarded clothes?
- While the Japanese organising guru’s message is good – that we should only surround ourselves with things that make us happy – it has caused purges of wardrobes and piles of unwanted waste
But the movement isn’t really about minimalism. It is about happiness. The key Kondo-ism employed in decluttering one’s space is the question, “Does it spark joy?”, and if something does not, then it is donated or thrown away.
The flip side to this phenomenon is that other homes are becoming more cluttered, as compulsive shoppers have noticed that second-hand stores and donation centres are now bursting at the seams.
Each episode of Tidying Up with Marie Kondo begins with her asking a family to gather every piece of clothing they have and put them into one huge pile. Most of the participants seem shocked at just how much they have amassed, and are determined to get rid of a large amount of it. But where does it all go?
Quality clothes no longer wanted by those inspired by Kondo are typically donated, while low-quality items generally end up in landfills. But there were so many donations at the beginning of this year that thrift stores in the United States have restricted or even stopped taking donations, according to reports in The Wall Street Journal and Time magazine. With people still determined to “Kondo” their wardrobes, many quality clothes are ending up in landfills.
