Uber and the Australian Red Cross have joined forces to offer a free pre-loved clothing pick-up on Saturday, October 21.
The initiative allows Australians to donate up to 20 kilograms of unwanted clothing to the Australian Red Cross via a pre-booked Uber delivery.
More than 60,000 kilograms of pre-loved clothes is expected to be collected from this initiative, across Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney.
The initiative comes as a new ‘Cost of Giving’ report, commissioned by Uber and the Australian Red Cross, found that Australians are sitting on an estimated $18.5 billion clothing stockpile that could be donated to charity.
Within that, the average Australian holds 24 pieces of clothing that have not been worn in the past 12 months, with an estimated average value of $952.
Gen Z hold approximately $681 worth of unused clothing in their wardrobes on average, Millennials lead with $1171, followed by Gen X with $1,083, and Boomers with $809 worth of unused clothing.
This is despite 64% of Australians saying they ‘spring clean’ their wardrobes at least once a year, and nearly two-fifths (39%) doing so at least once every six months.
Overall, 97% of Australians admit they have clothing sitting in their wardrobe unused. Of those that do donate their clothes to charity, four-fifths (82%) leave their unwanted clothes sitting in donation bags for up to three months.
However, 12% of participants admitted they had never donated clothing or shoes to charity.
“We know many Aussies are feeling the pinch, but it's not just financial donations that can make a difference,” Australian Red Cross head of retail Richard Wood said. “There are so many ways people can donate to support those in need, including donating quality items of clothing, shopping at an Australian Red Cross store or volunteering your time.
“Australian Red Cross brings people and communities together in times of need and participating in the Clothing Drive, you are enabling us to raise funds to continue delivering this work.”
This year’s Clothing Drive follows on from a similar one launched in 2022, with 42,000 kilograms of clothing donated.
In that, there were 3,400 donations made, with 250 Australian Red Cross volunteers participating and 2,600 Uber driver-partners involved.
“With natural disasters repeatedly wreaking havoc on some of Australia’s most vulnerable communities, we want to ensure Aussies know that they can make a significant contribution to supporting communities without having to open their wallets,” Uber ANZ general manager Dom Taylor said.
“The Uber and Australian Red Cross Clothing Drive makes it easier than ever for Aussies to donate their pre-loved clothing by offering free picks up directly from their doorstep to Australian Red Cross sorting centres on Saturday, October 21.
“It’s a no brainer; if you want to support vulnerable Aussie communities but aren’t sure how to beyond cash donations or volunteering your time, consider spring cleaning your wardrobe and donating your preloved clothing.”