My research

I have found the best way to not end up with loads of hangers is to not take them from the shops. Most shops have in-house reuse and recycling schemes. However these are not available to consumers.

Many charity shops do not take excess hangers as they have their own smart ones, but small ones might, so it’s worth asking.

Dry cleaners / menders should take back any wire hangers they have provided for reuse.

M&S encourage customers to leave hangers inshore from items being purchased. They are not taking hangers from other retailers.

Asda no longer send hangers out with online orders, and customers can leave hangers in store for items they purchase. They are not taking hangers from other retailers.

Other places that may take hangers are;

  • Homeless hostels
  • Students (advertise via Facebook groups, Olio or Next Door)
  • Care homes

With the age of some of my hangers they do occasionally break. Especially the clip ones! Then what do I do?

Three broken plastic clothes hangers
My broken hanger collection

Why they are so challenging to recycle

Mainly because most are a mix of plastic and metal. Any item that is a mix of materials causes issues in council recycling streams. Some hangers are made of such poor quality plastic that they are just not worth the cost of recycling.

Lots of dead ends

  • M&S used to recycle but are no longer taking them.
  • Sainsbury’s appear to have had a recycling scheme but this no longer exists.
  • Tescos used to have collection bins but these seem to have disappeared.
  • Even Teracycle don’t have a box for them!

Hope for the future

I have been speaking to a company that makes, and recycles, hangers. These are for some of the biggest clothing shops in the UK.

They are looking at hopefully providing a service for consumers within a big brands stores.

I’ll keep you appraised of updates as I get them. Please let me know in the comments below if you find any public hanger recycling still in operation.

UPDATE – June 2019

The mainstream media seem to be getting interested in this issue, always a start to generate change. Check out this article.

If you have a few personal broken hangers direct message me on FB, Twitter or email. I have an address you can post them to, but I can’t make it public at the moment.

UPDATE – January 2020

If you work for a company based within the City of London there is a hanger recycling service provided to business by First Mile. Ask your company if they can organise a box for staff to bring in their unwanted, or broken, hangers for recycling.

UPDATE COVID May 2020

The hanger recycling company I had a contact at has had to shut for the lockdown. They are not sure when they will reopen at the moment. Of course all the clothes shops are still closed and this affects them greatly.

If you have hangers you need to re-home please try my other suggestions first. Otherwise hang on to them 😉 and check back here for more updates in a months time.

UPDATE October 2020

Two big developments this month……

  1. First Mile now have a public hanger box option. It is £20 but if you club together with a few people it’s a cheap option. Note maximum box sizes stated on the website. They have lots of other items that can be recycled too. Some are sponsored by a company so are free to use.
  2. My hanger industry contact is back online and able to accept domestic hanger quantities directly. This is still an unofficial route so you need to contact me directly to get the address (email me, or comment below). I ask people NOT to pass the address on to others, or publish it on social media. This company are working with some large retailers to ensure that hanger recycling will be more accessible to all. Once I have news of this I will post it here.

Update June 2021

I was contacted by a London-based company called Sustainable Ventures, which has a track-record of developing and supporting high growth start-ups centred on sustainable innovation.

They are currently exploring more sustainable alternatives to clothes hangers in fashion and retail. The aim is to generate new design concepts for improving the sustainability of this aspect of the supply chain and to identify partners for future collaborations.

They have interviewed over 25 stakeholders across the supply chain – from leading fashion brands to global logistics providers, each one providing a unique perspective on the hanger problem. It was encouraging for them to hear from me that so many people have contacted me through this post about hanger recycling.

An overview of their research is going to be published soon, I will be able to share it with you.

As part of their research they came across some interesting brands doing hangers differently;

  • Ditto – hangers made of recycled paper
  • Arch & Hook – hangers made from certified wood, ocean plastics and recycled plastic
  • Norman Hangers – made from recycled paper

Green paint splat and text Going Green
This post has been linked to “A Green & Rosie Life” #GoingGreenLinky