Fighting fast fashion one post at a time

Featured in this image is Zach Baynham (left) and Avery Martine (right) who are the two creators of the Instagram thrifting account lou.thrifts. Photo courtesy of Zach Baynham.

Thrifting has become more popular as vintage styles have made a comeback. Zach Baynham and Avery Martine, KHS seniors and close friends, are the creators of an Instagram thrifting account. Their account, @lou.thrifts, is focused on sustainable fashion. They go thrifting together to buy used clothing that they later touch up and resell. The first clothing drop the account had was over Labor Day weekend, and if you visit their page you will see them modeling their thrifted finds. As the account gains followers and the business begins to break even, Martine and Baynham will donate 15 percent of their profits to a charity chosen by their followers monthly. The idea for this account was hatched at the beginning of quarantine. 

“We saw that everyone was doing closet accounts,” Baynham said. “We wanted to hop on that trend with a spin. We wanted to be a little more professional about it.”

Katherine Stobbe

The business was started with sustainability in mind. The partners hope to get people to shop more responsibly in terms of the environment. 

“Maybe if people see what we can find at the thrift store, it will make them want to go thrifting,” Martine said. “Hopefully the making of this Instagram account will help.” 

Inspiring others to be thinking sustainably while shopping is a dream come true for Martine and Baynham. According to them, growing their business alongside this is an added bonus. Martine and Baynham emphasize that thrifting is a more eco-friendly way to shop.

Screenshot of the lou.thrifts Instagram account.

Another business goal that the pair hopes to reach is to incorporate equal representation. They will have people of all different races, ethnicities, genders, body types, and abilities modeling for them because they want to make their business inclusive for everyone.

“My brother has down syndrome, and his girlfriend has down syndrome too,” Martine said. “We are going to have them model for us.”

Katherine Stobbe

Baynham and Martine sell thrifted items that still fit today’s latest fashion. By doing this, they are recycling quality clothing rather than letting them go to waste. Throwing out items of clothing that are no longer in style brings harm to the planet. 

“The problem with fast fashion is that [these companies] produce so much cheap and low-quality clothing,” Martine said. “I know that our generation will wear an outfit once for an Instagram pic and then throw it out. Buying these cheap quality clothes and then throwing them away is horrible for the environment. These industries produce this clothing to keep up with trends.” 

To put into perspective, the fashion industry produces about 80 billion garments a year, which is about 10 items of clothes for every person in the world. This is also 400% more than what was being produced 20 years ago.

— Avery Martine

Zach and Avery’s favorite place to thrift is at the Goodwill Outlet on Market Street. They have a wide selection of clothes that can be bought for only $1 a pound. 

“You will never find the same thing twice thrifting,” Baynham said.

Martine said that you have to keep an open mind when thrifting because, “You could find something and at first think, ‘Oh my god this is so ugly.’ But you have to just keep looking at it and thinking of different ways you could style it.”

The thrifting duo tends to shop more for their audience of teenagers. This means that when they go thrifting, they will try to shop for t-shirts and hoodies. They both agreed what’s most difficult about having their thrifting account is actually selling the clothes to other people. They cherish the clothes that they pick out, and would love to keep them around for their own outfits. 

“Fashion trends are a cycle, so clothes from the ‘80s and ‘90s are starting to make a comeback now,” Baynham said.

One thing that Baynham and Martine mentioned is that they tend to avoid buying heavy outerwear and any type of undergarment. This is so the people who depend on thrift stores for their clothes will be able to purchase the item for themselves, especially in the upcoming winter season. They hope to soon gain a solid follower base, grow their business and encourage sustainability. 

Katherine Stobbe

     

 

If you are interested in supporting Zach Baynham and Avery Martine’s eco-friendly business or have any more questions, follow them on their social media accounts. You can find them on Instagram @lou.thrifts and on TikTok @louthrifts.