https://padlet.com/mariebourinat/b93hku01mkc778s2 en-us 2023-03-22 12:25:02 UTC 2026-01-18 07:44:45 UTC hello@padlet.com mariebourinat https://padlet.com/mariebourinat/b93hku01mkc778s2/wish/2525751283 "Roba Amiga", which means "Friendly Clothing" in Catalan, is the main textiles collector and sorter operating in the region of Catalonia, Spain. Created in 2002 and formed by NGOs, charitable associations and social entities, the organization works more or less like Sympany does. Its main purpose is collect, classify and give a new destination to clothes that have been discarded by the consumers in the region. In 2022, the entity collected 14.000 tons of clothing through 3030 collection points distributed among 568 Catalan municipalities.

Roba Amiga operates with its own distribution channel through a network of 36 physical stores throughout the region, where the entity sells part of the garments it has previously collected and sorted. Some of the clothing is given to local associations helping people in need, and another part is dismantled so that the components can be re-cycled into new products. However, there is a huge amount of very low-value clothing that cannot find a way out, this is why some of it is ultimately shipped to developing countries, with unfortunately little (or no) control over its final destination, managers of Roba Amiga acknowledge.

The entity has a positive impact on the society since it offers, through its network of stores, very cheap products to consumers with tight budgets, and it employs people with disabilities or who are at risk of poverty and social exclusion, to work in its recycling plants. In fact, the motto of Roba Amiga is: "La teva roba crea llocs de treball, fem-la útil!" which means: "Your clothing may create jobs, let's make it useful!".

Even though tons of garments are collected every year, unfortunately only a small percentage (around 10% according to the founders of Roba Amiga) ends up being re-used and/or recycled. The reasons for such a low percentage are the low value that is given to the collected clothing and the difficulties in making the recycling process financially viable. Despite having been in business for more than 20 years, Roba Amiga seems to be facing the same problems as Sympany in the Netherlands. This shows how the clothing recycling process remains today a real challenge.

The municipality of Barcelona has recently created a free door-to-door clothing pick-up service with the aim of increasing the amount of collected clothes in the city, and encouraging the citizens to donate their discarded clothes instead of throwing them away. All the collected items are delivered to the recycling plants of Roba Amiga for their subsequent classification. It is still too early to know if this initiative will allow clothing donations to increase in the city in a near future. Hopefully it will! If so, Barcelona will probably inspire other municipalities of the region to operate the same way.]]> 2023-03-21 16:55:49 UTC https://padlet.com/mariebourinat/b93hku01mkc778s2/wish/2525751283