EYE on RETAIL: Carhartt accepting and selling trade-ins

Through a new program, Carhartt is accepting and selling customer trade-ins.

Partnering with resale platform Trove, Carhartt is launching Carhartt Reworked, a program designed to create a circular “recommerce” model based on previously owned products that customers submitted through trade-in and returns, as well as imperfect inventory.

The Reworked program will accept trade-in of select Carhartt products that meet condition standards, are less than 10 years old and had an original manufacturers’ suggested retail price of $50 or more. Accepted product categories include outerwear, shirt jacs (heavy lined shirts), bibs and overalls, hoodies, sweatshirts and pants.

Customers who bring eligible products to participating Carhartt stores can exchange their merchandise for a digital gift card, which can be used on reworked.carhartt.com, Carhartt.com, or at any Carhartt company store. The retailer will recycle or donate any goods not eligible for trade-in.

In the case of returned items and imperfect inventory, depending on the garment’s condition, the product will either be immediately available for resale; cleaned, repaired and reassessed; or removed from circulation and recycled.

Beginning March 1, 2023, reworked products are available for purchase at the Reworked section of Carhartt e-commerce site, and participating Carhartt retail stores will accept in-store trade-ins. The trade-in program will pilot in six stores across the U.S. before expanding to all Carhartt retail locations in 2023. As the program evolves, trade-ins will be available via online mail-in.

“‘Carhartt Reworked’ is an extension of our commitment to deliver the durability and reliability that hardworking people know and love, while reducing our environmental footprint,” said Gretchen R. Valade, director of sustainability at Carhartt. “With the help of Trove’s expertise in circular business and recommerce, we’re able to keep Carhartt products in use longer, out of landfills and in the hands of people who need it.”

“Carhartt is known for its high-quality fabric and stringent durability standards, meant to stand the test of time, which is why it feels natural to create a system to extend the life of such hardworking gear,” said Gayle Tait, CEO of Trove. “It’s an honor to add Carhartt to Trove’s best-in-class brand partnerships that are pushing boundaries of innovation and sustainability. As the first workwear brand to offer a resale program, Carhartt is setting the industry standard and investing in efforts to build a fully circular product lifecycle – and we’re proud to be part of that.”

Headquartered in Dearborn, Mich., with approximately 5,400 employees worldwide, Carhartt is family-owned and managed by the descendants of the company's founder, Hamilton Carhartt.

(This article originally appeared on HBSDealer's partner site, Chainstoreage.com.)