Simon Payne is the founder and owner of Sole Responsibility, a Halifax based ecommerce business that specializes in selling returned, ex-display and lightly used sports footwear and clothing, that would otherwise have been sent to landfill or incinerated.  All items are sourced from major High Street retailers and are honestly described and sold on the companies ebay shop at a highly discounted price.  Since its formation, Sole Responsibility has sold more than 100,000 thousand pairs of footwear and 20,000 thousand items of clothing, giving its customers a great deal, whilst reducing the impact of fast fashion on the environment.

‘I started the business with my wife, Helen, as a means of generating extra income to support the household budget.  We have two children, who have lots of interests, and my salary as a Project Manager didn’t leave us enough at the end of the month to pay for all the activities the kids were involved in.  At first we visited car-boot sales to source vintage clothing, like tweed jackets, but we could never keep up with demand for the product, so we explored more efficient ways of finding stock to sell. Eventually we were able to source sufficient stock to enable me to leave my job as a Project Manager and focus on the business full-time, which was a big leap into the dark.’

The business continued to grow steadily, however Simon’s and Sole Responsibility’s big break came when Simon read a news article heavily criticizing a major fashion brand for purposefully incinerating millions of pounds of unsold stock, rather than selling it a discount, which they thought would damage the brand. Simon wondered if this was common practice in the fashion industry and questioned if there was a better way. The kernel of an idea started to form in his mind.

Simon researched the subject and found a government white paper that was, like him, deeply questioning the environmental impact of the fast fashion industry and exploring ways that it could be reduced.  Simon speculated that what retailers and brands were destroying wasn’t bad stock, but just not good enough stock for them to sell at a retail price.  The idea of ‘giving seconds a second chance’ was born.

With the help of some old colleagues, and a little blue sky thinking, Simon developed a business plan that he would pitch to a number of High Street retailers and well-known brands.  He proposed that he could take what was a cost and a reputational problem for the retailer, turn that into a revenue stream for them, and provide consumers with low-cost access to premium products, albeit that they had minor defects or blemishes.  All this whilst also helping to protect the environment.

Initially progress was slow, with retailers sceptical that his plan would work.  However, with perseverance, and a little good fortune, Simon signed his first contract with a major High Street retailer and Sole Responsibility was really up and running.  Reflecting on this period of the company’s growth Simon says ‘I knew we were onto something, and it was disappointing that initially our proposal was met with scepticism.  However, we persevered, never lost faith that we were right, and eventually it paid off.’

Sole Responsibility now sources stock from a number of High Street retailers and brands and is a Sustainability Partner of JD Sports, a FTSE 100 company.  Simon says ‘I’m proud of our association with JD Sports and the work we do together to reduce the environmental impact of sporting footwear and clothing.  I know our customers appreciate the value they receive and feel better that they are also, in their purchasing decisions, helping to protect the environment.’

Before any footwear or clothing is offered for sale, it is inspected and a full and honest description of any defects or blemishes produced.  Often the product can be ‘as new’, however where this is not the case the customer is provided with a full description of any defect which enables them to make an informed purchasing decision.  To date Sole Responsibility have sold more than 120,000 thousand items, received feedback from 56,000 customers and has a satisfaction rating of 99.99% on ebay.

Reflecting on his journey so far Simon says ‘I’m very proud of what we’ve achieved, but I’m also aware that there’s a lot more we can do.  From a small lifestyle business, working at weekends and in the evenings, we now employ 14 full-time staff, who all share our vision to reduce the impact of fashion on the environment and provide the customer with a great value choice for their footwear and clothing needs. I think this is just the beginning.’

Any fellow RIA Members wanting to get involved and find out more about Sole Responsibility’s transactional solution to end of line product can get in touch with Simon directly.

Check out the Sole Responsibility RIA Member profile here  .