The Role of Germany in the Second-Hand Clothing Trade

Germany’s role in second-hand clothing trade is crucial due to the large quantities of second-hand clothes collected through nation-wide collection schemes. In 2011, Germany had a 70 percent collection rate, which was above average within European Member States (European Union 2019). The country has a great number of sorting facilities and empirical research as well as trade data shows that due to its sorting capacity, the country is able to serve export markets in the Global South. As opposed to Austria, which predominantly exports originals or deprived goods, as there is only one sorting facility who performs fine sorting matched to the export markets in the Global South. In 2018, Germany’s share in the global export market for worn textiles and clothing was estimated to account for 9.9 percent, with a trade value of around USD 411 million. As can be seen in Figure 5, Germany was the third largest exporter of second-hand clothes in 2018 and 2010. The Netherlands and Poland were the main two export markets between 2010 and 2018. Exports to Sub Saharan African countries accounted for around 19 percent in 2018, while in 2010 the share was higher, estimated at 29.8 percent. Germany exported second-hand clothes worth of USD 185 million to EU27 countries, accounting for a share of 44.9 percent of all German exports in 2018 (WITS 2019). Empirical investigation shows that while a great number of clothes collected in Germany are sorted within the country. The rising collection quantity, however exceed capacities of sorting facilities, which is why used textiles are exported without prior sorting to sorting facilities abroad.

Germany plays a crucial role in the GPN of second-hand clothes, due to its sorting capacity. The sorting facilities greatly differ concerning their capacities, according to one of the interviewees there is three major players in the market, sorting around 50 tons a day in peak times, further there is a large number of medium-sized companies processing around 5 to 7 tons a day, and various small-sized sorting companies (Interview 17). One of the interviewees from an interest group for sorters highlights that Germany has a long history in second-hand clothing trade, and actors build up extensive knowledge and skills over the years. The interest group represents the six biggest sorting facilities in Germany, which, including their affiliated sorting companies, represent the vast majority, namely around one third, of the domestic sorting capacity.

Among the six shareholders is the biggest sorter with a yearly amount of sorted textiles of 90,000 tons. The sorting facilities however have different capacities, and some are also present in other European countries (Interview 15). The German national recycling association has around 130, predominantly commercial member organizations, which are active in collection, sorting and redistribution of used clothes (CCK 2019a). In a study published by the national recycling association, with data based on their member organizations, in 2013, around one million tons of used textiles were collected. This number increased from 750,000 tons in 2007. Out of those collected clothes, 93 percent are sorted in the EU, 66 percent of these in Germany (BVSE 2015).

As can be seen in Figure 11, the German production network of second-hand clothes is characterized by various interlinkages between commercial and charitable actors.

One of the representatives of an advocacy group in Germany outlined that considering the following differentiation would give more insights on degree of dependence, and hence the power position of actors. Charitable organizations can be classified based on; first, the scope of clothing collection; is it just a side business for the organization or does it constitute the main business, meaning that the organization’s exclusive field of activity is collection of old clothes and used articles, such as electronic waste.

Second, which processes take place; does the organization redistribute collected clothes without prior sorting (1), or does the organization perform its own sorting processes and redistributes parts of collected and sorted goods in its own shops (2), meaning that the organization prepares discarded goods for re-use. Third, does the organization perform its own collection or does it sell its logo to another actor (3) (Interview 17). Empirical research shows that charitable organizations are

predominantly collectors, some also sort discarded clothes for redistribution in their local shops.

Commercial actors on the other hand can be classified based on whether they perform their own collection (4), or are in a cooperation with charitable actors (5). Hence, either purchase quantities of original goods from charitable actors, or perform collection of clothes under the name of a charitable actor (Interview 17). According to the national recycling association, around 63 percent of commercial actors are in a cooperation with a charitable actor (BVSE 2015). Further, commercial actors can be differentiated based on which processes they perform, such as if they are active in collection, sorting or redistribution of second-hand clothes on export markets or local markets, through their own shops (Interview 17). Additionally, empirical investigation shows that the number of commercial actors that operate online shops for second-hand clothes, predominantly cream goods, increased in recent years. Those actors can be associated with category (4) textile collectors and sorters without charity label, and are an important category to consider.

Figure 11 Mapping of the German second-hand clothing production network

Note: (7) classified by RepaNet (2015) as such, due to non-classified structure Source: own representation

Additional actors in the German production network of second-hand clothes are municipalities, who either perform collection themselves through public disposal operations (6), or outsource activities to external actors. Collections are classified as illegal, if the collector does not comply with national waste policies, nor rights of owners of private or public properties (BVSE 2015). Retailers form another actor group, they either perform their own in-store collection or distribute unsold stock to charitable or commercial actors (Interview 1, 4, 9). Empirical investigation showed that sorting facilities in Germany provide different kind of services for retailers to handle the end-of life end-of their products (Interview 9). The biggest sorter in Germany has a subsidiary, which is active on a global level and performs in-store collection for multinational retailers such as H&M, C&A, Levi’s or Forever 21 (CCK 2019a). Further, HUMANA (7) is also active on the German market, and runs a sorting facility and around 21 second-hand clothing shops (HUMANA 2018).

Due to the complexity of the market in Germany, there are no exact numbers about the market share of commercial and charitable actors (Interview 13, 17). The umbrella organization for non-profit collectors in Germany has around 130 member organizations. The national recycling association also counts 130 members (CCK 2019a), from which 90 percent are located in Germany. The biggest commercial collector in Austria is also a member of the German recycling association (Interview 13). It is noticeable that charitable actors are predominantly active in collection of used clothes (BVSE 2015). The largest charitable collector in Germany has a yearly collection rate of 10,000 tons (Interview 1). Commercial actors on the other hand, as opposed to Austria, also perform sorting processes within Germany and in general have bigger collection quantities than charitable actors. One of the interviewed sorters outlined that they collected around 80,000 tons of discarded clothes, having 15,000 collection containers in place, which are predominantly placed in Germany (8,000) and Switzerland (6,000), in addition to collected clothes they receive from charities. In the sorting facility in Germany, around 23,000 tons are sorted annually (Interview 8).

Summing up, Germany plays a crucial role as an exporting country in the GPN of second-hand clothes, ranked on the third place of top exporters in 2010 and 2018 and exports second-hand clothes to countries of the Global South (WITS 2019). Similar to Austria, the country is characterized by a nation-wide collection scheme with charitable and commercial actors sharing the market. The role of municipalities and retailers has gained in importance, increasing competition on the market. The rising quantity of

collected goods however, exceeds sorting capacities which is why used textiles are exported without prior sorting to sorting facilities abroad, highlighting the crucial role of re-exporting hubs in the trade with used clothes.