Lucy & Yak Bristol: The popular fashion shop swapping people’s old clothes for vouchers to buy new ones

A Bristol fashion shop has launched a new scheme where customers can return their old clothes and earn vouchers to buy new ones.

Ethical clothing brand Lucy & Yak on Stokes Croft has just started its Re:Yak Buyback scheme which encourages people to bring back any pre-loved (and washed) Lucy & Yak item.

For every item returned, whatever their condition, customers can get a voucher for up to £20, which can be redeemed against any purchase in the store over £50. Store manager Abbie Warren says customers have already been bringing back their old Lucy & Yak items and supporting the scheme, which aims to reduce landfill.

She said: “We believe that nothing should ever go to landfill so we’ll always accept pre-loved Lucy & Yak items, and if it’s not suitable to resell to the public, we’ll recycle it.

“The items returned go onto our Re:Yak Buyback rails and they are proving really popular. Some of the pieces are from when the business first started so are quite collectable because the logos were different and there weren’t many made in those days.”

Lucy & Yak opened its first Bristol shop in October after a successful pop-up earlier in 2022. Started five years ago by Lucy Greenwood as an online vintage clothing business, there are also stores in Brighton and Norwich, with a Nottingham branch due to open next month.

An independent brand that has become as well known for its ‘comfort’ clothing as it has for being a people-focussed company (all staff are paid the ‘Living Wage’), the clothes are sustainably made using 100% organic cotton and even recycled plastic bottles.

Abbie said: “We put people and sustainability at the heart of everything we do,” says Abbie, who adds that the unisex clothes are designed to be worn by anybody.

“It’s about the freedom to wear anything you want and for nobody to judge what you put on. We offer a range of clothing from dungarees and fleeces to socks and hats - comfort is key for us.”

Located at the bottom end of Stokes Croft close to Pieminister and The Full Moon pub, Lucy & Yak has quickly immersed itself into the local community.

Abbie said: “We are really busy and we’ve been really welcomed by Bristol. We’ve already teamed up with Sofar Sounds who promote gigs here and we’ve been doing mini markets for local independent makers. We are a growing company so we want to support small businesses.”

And the Lucy & Yak brand is growing fast in Bristol, too, although Abbie says there is no ‘typical’ customer.

“Our clothes are designed for everyone and we want them all to come in and feel special. It’s all about trying different things on.

“Some people might come in and think they would never wear a particular item so we get them to try it on and they often end up loving it and buying more than one - there’s always a ‘gateway’ dungaree or pair of trousers!

“I walk around Bristol and see people wearing our clothes and it gives me a buzz. If somebody is serving you in a cafe and they’re wearing Lucy & Yak and you are too, there’s often a nod - it feels like you’re part of a club.”

As well as the Re:Yak Buyback scheme, the shop also sells ‘imperfect’ items from the manufacturers, often at heavily reduced prices. Again, it’s to stop clothes ending up in landfill, but it has been popular with savvy customers looking for a bargain.

Abbie says: “After Christmas, we had a two week ‘imperfect sale’ and that was really well received. The clothes flew out.

“We had a two hour queue waiting for us when we reopened. It was like the Next sale on steroids - but everybody was really polite and there was no scrapping!”

Lucy & Yak is at 20 Stokes Croft, Bristol, BS1 3PR.