France is set to introduce a scheme to subsidise clothing repairs to reduce the environmental impact of the fashion industry.
Set to begin in October 2023, the initiative will provide subsidies for clothing and shoe repair, ranging from six to 25 euros per item. The main objective is to address the issue of the 700,000 metric tonnes of clothing that are discarded each year and to combat the negative impacts of fast fashion. Alongside this, the scheme also aims to generate more employment opportunities for tailors, cobblers and other repair service providers.
The French ministry of ecology has entrusted the implementation of the scheme to a private organisation called Refashion. Tailors, clothing brands and repair shops can participate in the initiative through Refashion free of charge. A small ‘eco-contribution’ will be collected on sales by Refashion to cover the subsidy, while the government will not provide direct funding for the scheme. Subsidies will be directly deducted from customers’ bills. Refashion will subsequently arrange for the participating companies to be reimbursed within 15 days.
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