From September 2 to October 31, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield hosts the French Red Cross solidarity initiative of “Reverse Shop” (“Boutique Inversée”) in 9 of its French shopping centers for a new clothing collection experience.
An innovative concept of charity store: the “Reverse Shop”.
Back in 2019, a pop-up operated by the French Red Cross was set up for ten days in the heart of Westfield Vélizy 2. The principle was simple: the store was empty at the opening every morning and throughout the day, it was filled up with the items of clothing donated by visitors. Thanks to this “Reverse Shop” concept, the French Red Cross was able to collect 6 tons of textiles (clothing, shoes…) during these ten days of operation.
Wider deployment of this successful operation
In September and October, URW will continue this innovative and solidarity project on a larger scale by offering Reserve Shops in 9 shopping centres in France (Westfield Forum des Halles, Westfield Euralille, Westfield Carré Sénart, Westfield Rosny 2, Westfield Vélizy 2, La Part Dieu, Westfield Les 4 Temps, Alma and Westfield Parly 2).
The goal of this initiative is threefold. On the one hand, visitors are encouraged to engage in a more responsible and circular approach to consumption by offering a second life to their clothes thanks to donations, and by purchasing second-hand clothes directly on site. In this way, the Reverse Shop enables the French Red Cross to both collect clothing and finance local social actions.
In addition, this initiative aims to raise visitors’ awareness on the social actions undertaken by the French Red Cross, in particular thanks to the presence of volunteers from the French Red Cross and Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield who will manage the pop-ups and will be able to inform the visitors about the association’s projects, etc. Also, the French Red Cross will give to each buyer a label that explains the equivalence between donations and actions to make it more transparent to visitors and to symbolize a connection throughout the donation chain.
Our aim at the French Red Cross is to show that giving, buying from the association, is an act of commitment. Clothes have a financial value that allows us to continue our actions, but there is more than that. Its value is also emotional and social since each garment has its own history, it has lived a life and will live a new one with the future buyer. We wish to link the donor, the volunteer, the buyer and the public accompanied by the garment. The “Reverse Boutique” embodies a place of stories, of social life, of exchanges, and above all of commitment!Jacques Grimont
Through this partnership with the French Red Cross, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield reinforces its commitment to work hand in hand with its local partners and communities and to reduce the general carbon footprint by encouraging a more circular consumption, which are central ambitions of the Better Places 2030 strategy.
We are proud to see this initiative and this partnership with the French Red Cross grow. The Reverse Shop is an innovative concept that multiplies the impact. It allows us to support the social actions of a major local player across France, to offer concrete solutions to increase the sustainability of products, while raising our visitors’ awareness on the importance of a more reasoned consumption. These are all issues that we are committed to tackling on a daily basis in order to transform our assets into responsible content platforms.Sabine Pompey