Kmart reveals concerning mistake young Aussies are making in stores

Ask most Gen Zs, and they'll happily have a rant about how Boomers are responsible for stuffing up the environment. But there's a "surprising" habit that older Australians have that these youngsters might want to take a look at when it comes to saving the planet.

Kmart, one of Australia’s largest low-cost retailers, has invested in a new study examining one of the nation's biggest issues — how we purchase and dispose of clothing. The RMIT survey of over 3000 people surprised researchers after it was discovered income, gender and postcode were largely irrelevant.

Instead, the data revealed age was the greatest determining factor when it came to what people bought and what they did with unwanted items. Younger shoppers were better at mending clothes and buying second hand, while older generations were best at donating unwanted clothes.

Lead author Professor Alice Payne told Yahoo Lifestyle she’s hopeful the knowledge gained from the study will empower Gen Z, Boomers and Millennials to learn from each other to reduce their environmental footprint.

While younger people do resell, share, or donate old clothes, the survey found a concerning mistake they commonly make – they are more likely to throw away unwanted garments than other groups. Around 47 per cent of older Australians said they would never throw perfectly good clothes in household waste bins but only 32 per cent of younger consumers could say the same.

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Boomers also have areas that need improvement. “Older Australians generally own fewer clothes overall, and they’re really good at donating, however they rarely buy secondhand clothing,” Payne said.

Because buying secondhand keeps clothing in circulation longer, Payne thinks older Aussies should consider following the lead of young people on this. Only 48 per cent of them spend money on secondhand clothing, versus 73 per cent of young shoppers.

Why Boomers repair clothes differently to Gen Z

Clothes are repaired by all generations, but the way it is carried out differs. “Older people tend to repair more in a sort of functional way, but the younger group did it more for creative self-expression,” Payne said.

The survey also examined the types of clothing most frequently donated and when this occurs. T-Shirts and long-sleeved tops topped the list at 62 per cent, and the most common time people donate is simply when they have time, followed by after summer.

Simple reason younger Aussies have more clothes

There was also a big difference in how many items younger people had in their wardrobes, and Payne thinks this makes perfect sense.

“There isn’t necessarily a generational divide in behaviour between Boomers and Gen Z, but it's actually about what time of your life you're in,” Payne said.

“So if you're a young person, you're more likely to be trying on new identities, as you try to find out who you are in the world. And that means that your wardrobe is going to shift and change as you do.

“But the older person, who's more settled in their identity, in their practices, will be quite happy to keep something in use for as long as possible and to repair it and so on.”

Shock figures reveal impact of fashion industry on environment

Most people know Australia has one of the worst environmental footprints of any country in the world.

It's the only developed nation to be on the Worldwide Fund for Nature list of deforestation hotspots and it has the worst record of mammalian extinction on Earth. It’s also one of the world’s biggest exporters of fossil fuels, and there are plans to expand production with 28 new coal and gas projects approved under the current federal government.

But what’s less known is that Australia also punches above its weight when it comes to buying copious amounts of garments. It imports over 383,000 tonnes (or 1.4 billion units) annually, with more than 200,000 tonnes being sent to landfill.

A survey by the Australia Institute this year found the nation has overtaken the United States as the biggest consumer of fast fashion per capita in the world. France is tackling the problem by pushing for a $16 tax on every ultra-fast fashion item sold. But at home, there's been very little government leadership on the issue, there are calls for Australia to act.

"We definitely need a fast fashion tax in Australia... it would appear that as much of the world needs one, we probably need one even faster," Nina Gbor from the Australia Institute told Yahoo Lifestyle on Wednesday.

"We need a multi-pronged and multifaceted approach... (ultra-fast fashion outlets) Shein and Temu are set to make $2.3 billion in sales in Australia in 2024, so it's evident the problem is only going to get worse if we don't disrupt the system."

How bad is fashion for the environment?

Globally, fashion is the third largest polluting industry, after fossil fuels and agriculture, creating 10 per cent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. And Kmart is a major retailer of cheap clothing that's manufactured overseas.

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Yahoo Lifestyle understands the survey is one of several new ventures planned by Kmart, to try and reduce textile waste. Follow up studies are set to run in 2027 and 2031 to assess whether improvements have been made.

“This landmark study provides us with the vital data we need in order to develop and invest in evidence-based programs and initiatives that will directly and measurably reduce the amount of clothing that ends up in landfill,” its head of sustainability Blake Lindley said in a statement.