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During the tour, the group took a deep dive into the world of textile reuse and recycling, gaining insight into both the environmental stakes and the opportunities for positive impact.

Helpsy Chief of Staff Lisa Sciannella led the tour and discussion, sharing how the company works to keep clothing out of landfills while creating meaningful jobs and operating with a strong commitment to sustainability.

Every day, Helpsy (a certified B Corp) collects 100,000 pounds of clothing across 1,500 communities, businesses, and nonprofits in ten northeastern states, including Maryland. Their focus on transparency, education, and community involvement is key to tackling the textile waste crisis.

Challenging Common Misconceptions

The tour also helped debunk widespread myths about what really happens to our used clothes. Here are just a few:

Fiction #1: “Most clothing does not go in the trash, it goes to charity.”

Fact: Charities take in about 10% of discarded clothes and sell them to fund their work, but sorting donations is tough with limited space and staff. Thrift stores only sell about 25% of what they get, adding to the waste.

Fiction #2: “Nobody wants my old clothing and my unwearable textiles will just get thrown away anyway.”

Fact: Most used clothing can be reused or recycled, with only about 5% too damaged to salvage. Clothes in good condition are always in demand, and even unwearable items can serve as raw materials for other uses.

Fiction #3: “Technology is advancing rapidly, and companies can recycle my clothes using chemical processes. In fact, I can buy clothes that are made with recycled textiles already”

Fact: While innovations are emerging, large-scale textile-to-textile recycling is not yet widely viable, and the process can be energy-intensive and produce emissions. Many garments labeled as “recycled” are made from plastic bottles (rPET), not actual old textiles. Reuse remains the best first step.