Why do donation centers struggle with large amounts of low-quality clothing?

Donation centers face significant challenges due to the rise of fast fashion, a business model defined by the rapid production of low-cost, trend-driven garments.

The primary struggle for these organizations stems from two main factors:

• Excessive Volume: The fast fashion model encourages consumers to purchase and discard clothing frequently, leading to a massive influx of donations that centers struggle to process and manage.1
• Inferior Quality: Because many fast fashion items are manufactured using inexpensive synthetic materials and prioritize speed over durability, they are often of poor quality. These items are frequently unsuitable for resale, making it difficult for secondhand shops to find buyers for the donated goods.1

Ultimately, the overproduction of low-quality apparel overwhelms the capacity of donation centers, forcing them to divert a large portion of these items to textile recycling centers or, in many cases, landfills.1