Unprecedented response from shoppers raises £265,000

The M&S and Oxfam Clothes Exchange has been a huge hit with consumers, and has raised an extra quarter of a million pounds for Oxfam's work in its first month.

So far more than 80,000 people have donated their M&S clothing to Oxfam since the launch of the Exchange.

The extra revenue raised across Oxfam's 750 shops in the UK between the launch of the Exchange on January 28 and March 1 was approximately £265,000.

In one week (February 4-10) Oxfam's sales were 17 per cent higher than the same period in 2007 - Oxfam would only usually expect to see trading peaks like this during highly publicised international emergencies. Overall, February saw Oxfam shops' sales up by around 5 per cent.

David McCullough, Director of Trading for Oxfam said: "The increase in sales that we have seen over the last few weeks has been phenomenal. People are clearly very excited by the M&S and Oxfam Clothes Exchange, and it is starting to deliver real results that will make a profound difference to many people around the world."

The Exchange provides a £5 M&S voucher to people whose clothing donation to Oxfam includes one or more M&S labelled items. The voucher is redeemable against a £35 spend on M&S clothing, beauty and home products. Vouchers for use in March are available now, and April vouchers will be available from Easter weekend.

The extra money raised since the launch of the partnership is enough to pay for Oxfam to undertake profoundly important and lifesaving work around the world.

Some examples of what Oxfam could pay for with £265,000 include: Oxfam's project to protect up to 55,000 people from flooding in Colombia; helping 35,000 landless households in India to protect their incomes, health and security; Improving teacher training for 100,000 children in Tanzania.

The increase in donations to Oxfam also means that the sales increase can be sustained by large quantities of high quality items for some time to come.

Mike Barry, Head of Corporate Social Responsibility at Marks &Spencer said: "We're delighted that our customers are so whole-heartedly backing the Exchange. It's staggering to think that it has raised so much money for Oxfam's good work in the first month alone, and we hope that M&S customers continue to offer their valuable support to the project."

David McCullough added: "Oxfam's unique recycling facility, Wastesaver, means that even the items that can't be sold in our shops still go on to help us raise money to tackle poverty. We are hugely grateful to our donors or our volunteers for helping to make February fantastic for Oxfam, and we hope that the exchange means that March is magnificent too."

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For further information for media, please call:

Oxfam
Rob McNeil 01865 472334 / 07909 860 370

Marks & Spencer
Olivia Ross 0208 718 1618
Clare Wilkes 0208 718 8642

Notes to editors:

M&S and Oxfam Clothes Exchange

• The M&S and Oxfam Clothes Exchange will raise more money for Oxfam to help people escape poverty around the world. This includes dealing with issues in more than 70 countries, ranging from campaigning against unfair trade rules that keep developing countries in poverty, to providing tools, seeds and skills to poor farmers. It also means helping vulnerable communities when disasters happen; supporting women's rights in developing countries and working to tackle climate change and HIV and AIDS.

  
  

• Vouchers not issued for M&S intimate apparel (such as lingerie, underwear and swimwear), hosiery and socks that are donated to Oxfam




• In the Republic of Ireland, M&S vouchers will be for €7 off €50 on M&S general merchandise




• One M&S voucher distributed per donation




• One M&S voucher can be used for each transaction of £35 or more in M&S for general merchandise products - clothing, home or beauty (not food)

Oxfam and textiles

Oxfam is the only major charity to operate its own textile sorting facility, Wastesaver, which maximises revenue from textiles that cannot be re-sold in its shops and minimises the amount of textiles sent to landfill. The facility sorts clothing and resells it through a number of different routes, including:

• redistribution to Oxfam shops




• selling on the Oxfam online shop and at festivals




• to designers who restyle garments and reuse fabrics in their collections




• to textile wholesalers in the UK and overseas




• the low grade items not sold as clothing are sold in bulk to recycling traders where it is used, for example, as mattress filler, carpet underlay, upholstery and car sound insulation

M&S and Oxfam will also explore the possibility of taking materials that can't be sold or recycled through traditional methods, such as embellished denim, and recycling it into cardboard boxes, for example, or back into denim clothing.