British fashion retailer, Marks & Spencer, is the first major high street company to join the Dotte Resale Collective, which was launched last year by the peer-to-peer marketplace Dotte and allows parents to purchase, sell, donate, and recycle old children's clothing.

Tobias and the Bear and Turtledove London are among the 16 independent and environmentally conscious kidswear businesses that make up the Dotte Resale Collective. As part of M&S Kidswear's trial on the site, customers who sell pre-loved M&S clothes will receive a £5 off voucher when they spend £25 on M&S online.

Alice Duggan, head of M&S Kidswear, said that they design and create their products such that the M&S logo indicates quality – stuff that can be passed down – because they believe style shouldn't cost the earth. Pre-loved selling is a burgeoning business, and they're excited to learn more from an agile start-up while also helping the circular economy by joining the Dotte resale community. They also intend to broaden their consumer base through the platform, as they continue to make M&S kidswear more relevant to customers and the 'go to' destination store and internet not just for uniforms, but also for everyday style and value.

Dotte was co-founded by Louise Weiss and Samantha Valentine in 2020 to make it easier for parents to buy and resell pre-loved things on a digital platform, with M&S being one of the most popular brands, with over 400 items for sale on the marketplace.

It states in the statement that by endorsing M&S, consumers can be assured that "purchasing with M&S is buying well," since all M&S Kidswear goods are subjected to comprehensive quality and wash testing to guarantee that they can be passed down to friends and family. Inside the jackets, the shop adds a name label with space for three owners.

Samantha Valentine, co-founder at Dotte, said that as every parent knows, children just don't stop growing! And, as a result of all those growth spurts, children's clothing is one of the fastest-growing segments of the fashion industry, with 183 million items of children's clothes ending up in landfills in the United Kingdom alone each year. That's why Dotte was created! They wanted to provide parents with an easy option to pass on their garments to other families while also recouping some of the money they spent and reducing their carbon footprint. Having a well-known children's retailer like M&S on board signifies a significant shift in the industry, and the fact that they reward their customers for selling M&S children's clothing will inspire even more families to participate in the circular economy!

M&S's participation in the Dotte Resale Collective comes after the retailer's investment in the Dotte platform through its joint venture with Founder's Factory, a start-up incubator. It also invested in Zoa, which runs the renting site Hirestreet, last year.

Dotte Resale Collective has added eight sustainable children's clothing labels in the last few weeks, including Claude & Co, The Bright Company, and Little Loves Cornwall.