Singaporean label rewards recycling with credits for future purchases

With its Carrot Credit system, Tortoise The Label aims to encourage circular fashion by making recycling easier and clothes more affordable

Spotted: Despite an increasingly eco-conscious young population, buying from sustainable brands remains beyond the budget of many. This is why Singaporean lifestyle brand Tortoise The Label is on a mission to make the fashion industry more affordable and sustainable.

With every second hand piece of clothing that Tortoise customers send back for recycling, ‘Carrot Credits’ are rewarded for future purchases. The aim is for people to feel like their first purchases are the ‘down payments’ of a lifelong journey with sustainable basics.

The Carrot Credit recycling system embodies a circular model, keeping textile waste out of landfills and encouraging customers to give their preloved Tortoise pieces a second life.

Twenty four year-old founder, Megan Lam explains that she realised wardrobe basics are hard to source second hand. The label launched in September this year with a first collection featuring 100 per cent organic cotton tops for all genders.

The brand’s t-shirts come without tags or labels, eliminating resource-heavy sorting and unnecessary waste. This helps to make recycling as easy as possible. Moreover, clothes are mailed in ‘TotePacks’ made from recycled plastic bottles – these are designed to be used both as tote bags and also as a return parcel. 

Up next, the brand is exploring how to extend its Carrot Credits recycling system to textiles and second hand clothes from other brands too.

Another similar initiative spotted by Springwise is Startup For Days, which gives users store credit in return for their old brand clothes, which will then either be resold or recycled.