Time to de-clutter
Brits are throwing away up to a staggering £1.6 billion worth of clothing per year because of stains, a study has revealed.
The company Astonish, which sells oven and cookware cleaning paste, carried out the research and the results showed a huge £100 worth of clothing is chucked away every year as people struggle to remove the dirt and blemishes from their clothing.
Despite the current economic gloom and constantly finding ways to stretch our money further, when it comes to our wardrobe, we aren’t holding back. Brits discard clothes at the first sight of a stain with spills such as curry, red wine and tomato sauce being the most common spillage.
Oil is the most dreaded stain to fall on clothing with 30.1% of Brits saying that they fear trying to clean this the most. Coffee and mud are less feared when it comes to washing them from their clothing with only 3.5% of people saying that they fear coffee stains and a mere 1.4% dislike mud.
We’re a nation of lovers for takeaways and wine but nearly a third of the people who carried out the study expressed anxiety of spilling curry and red wine down their clothes. Three-in four people confessed to throwing away dirtied clothes, showcasing further the stain ‘fright factor’ amongst young people in Britain.
Astonishingly a staggering 70% of 18-24 year olds admitted that they actively avoid buying light-coloured clothes for fears that food and other stains will ruin their attire. Not only are we more cautious of the colour of clothing that we purchase but we also want to look our best. The study revealed that 66% of people refused to wear stained garments in public, even if they’re not visible. Perhaps more surprisingly is that 51% will leave a social occasion to return home and change clothes if their outfit gains a stain.
Although Brits are not hoarders when it comes down to stained clothing, the results from the study show that 38.4% of Brits admit they will purchase a stained garment if discounted in some way. We all love a good bargain; even if the product is marked, we’re still buying it!
Nick Moss, Marketing Manager at Astonish, said: “We’re really surprised at these results and Britain’s ‘throw away’ culture towards clothes with stains. Not only is £1.6billion worth of garments being unnecessarily disposed each year, but the environmental impact of such a huge amount of clothes being discarded cannot be underestimated. It appears the majority of the public doesn’t realise their much-loved outfits can be saved.”
Nick says that investing in a stain remover will be more beneficial, particular in the environments case.
To save clothes and carpets from those tough-to-tackle stains, add a scoop of Astonish Oxy Plus to every wash for superb laundry results. For spot stains on fabric, simply dilute a soop of Oxy Plus in hot water and scrub until the stain is gone.
Tagged in Clothing