The information found in Archicom’s ‘Barometr’ report entitled “Conscious living” shows that nearly 49% of people would gladly use a place at their housing estate where they could recycle or swap items if they had a chance to do so. Data confirms that Poles increasingly more often want to give their stuff a second life, which is especially true of clothes and other wardrobe items. The Ubraniomat which recently debuted at a housing estate helps them do that.
Ubraniomat is a device developed as a result of collaboration between 4F and Ubrania do Oddania brands, also joined by the Archicom company. The machine that supports circular economy in the textile industry will be available to the residents of the Wroclaw’s Olimpia Port housing estate. The goal of the organisations involved was to launch the device even closer to local communities; that’s why it debuted as a part of a developer project.
Values ingrained in Archicom’s DNA, respect for the environment and the surrounding world, as well as needs of residents have always been our top priority. We are aware that as a responsible developer, it is our duty to not only do business in line with the principles of sustainable growth, but also to support flat buyers in their environmentally friendly initiatives or changing daily habits into more ecological ones. We’re constantly seeking new, innovative solutions in this area. As part of PlayFair, we started an intersectoral debate on social and environmental responsibility that the 4F and Ubrania do Oddania brands have joined,’ explains Waldemar Olbryk, CEO at Archicom S.A. We believe that great results are a sum of small steps, not grand actions. That’s why the circularity of textiles is one of the areas that we decided to develop together. We’re glad that the first Ubraniomat at a housing estate in Poland will appear in an Archicom residential development. I have no doubt that the PlayFair project will soon allow us to join forces with representatives of other sectors which will translate into greater efficiency of actions for our planet, – the expert concludes.
Supporting charity organisations and a contribution to the circularity of clothing
Ubrania do Oddania and 4F created a system of clothes collection, restoration, recycling and reuse that is unique on a European scale. Our joint efforts also aim to promote circularity in the textile industry, as well as minimise the amount of discarded clothing, while supporting charitable organisations. As part of the project we run with Archicom, for every 1 kilogram of clothes collected at the Ubraniomat, PLN 1 will be donated to the Rewir Twórczy foundation which operates near the Olimpia Port housing estate. Thus, the developer, apart from participating in the ecological revolution of the textile industry, supports an organisation it’s been cooperating with for years, as well as stimulates the forming of local communities within own housing estates.
The device for collecting clothes is one of the elements of the circular model that the 4F brand pursues with Ubrania do Oddania under the 4F Change strategy. Thanks to this, we clean up not only after ourselves, but after the entire textile industry in Poland, and unwanted clothes are given a second life. We set up our first joint Ubraniomat device in the Bonarka shopping centre in Cracow at the end of June. It is immensely popular with customers. The second device, which appeared in the Olimpia Port housing estate in Wrocław thanks to the Archicom company, is twice as big as the first one. It has one main advantage: it is located close to the residents. The idea of establishing cooperation came from Waldemar Olbryk, CEO at Archicom S.A. and it was met with enormous involvement of the company’s other employees. For us, it’s not only proof of the company’s high awareness of climate change, but also a real commitment to finding solutions for the benefit of the environment, says Przemysław Feliga, ESG Project Manager at OTCF/4F.
Sustainable and ecological clothing industry
Today’s climate challenges require decisive steps: both from business and society. It is proving equally important to take action that will combine the competences of companies from various sectors. According to McKinsey’s experts, the textile industry produces nearly 4% of global CO2 emissions, which means that initiatives leading to the revolution in the fashion industry are badly needed today.
The mission of our brand, Ubrania Do Oddania, is to revolutionise the fashion industry and promote the reuse of clothes. Currently, we’re striving to effectively combine the fundraising efforts on the internet platform www.ubraniadooddania.pl with offline collection of clothing and the idea of the popular lockers that can be found in housing estates. We want joining the eco-circularity mission and supporting charitable organisations to be easy and encouraging for users and, first of all, transparent. Now it’s possible thanks to Ubraniomat, which has just been set up in the Olimpia Port housing estate in Wrocław. The device weighs clothes and identifies the donator, so that the user instantly learns what amount will be donated to the organisation we support.Moreover, Ubraniomat ensures proper conditions for storing textiles in all weather conditions. ‘It’s a perfect solution for quick donation of clothing and accessories that get a second life thanks to our brand,’ says Tomasz Bocian, CEO of the Ubrania do Oddania brand.
Using the Ubraniomat is very intuitive and uncomplicated. You can use it to donate men’s, women’s, as well as children’s clothing, underwear, shoes, accessories made of leather and not only, home textiles and toys. It is important to remember, however, that their condition must be good enough for reuse. All you need to do is open your 4F mobile app, log into your account and generate a special QR code.
The Ubraniomat located at the Olimpia Port housing estate in Wrocław is another, after Cracow, T-Master’s implementation for the Ubrania do Oddania brand. Thanks to them the residents of Wrocław can conveniently and easily do tasks related to circular economy in the textile industry: tasks that often seem difficult, but very much necessary and needed. Introducing the Ubraniomat, an intelligent device for the collection of recycled materials that is more available to people also means saving time. ‘Everybody knows how precious time is to each one of us,’ says Agnieszka Rychlika, vice-president of the board at T-Master S.A. and adds, ‘In line with the #lesswaste motto, which also holds true for textiles, for nearly 5 years T-Master S.A. has been introducing smart waste bins in Polish cities, thus digitising the area and educating society about the need for effective segregation. All these actions have one common goal: reducing the amount of waste and using it in other areas through recycling.