Australia Uturn Makes It Your Turn
By Nina Combs (04/05/26) — Sydney, AU
What are you wearing? For many, the connotation of this question could be seen as provocative, but in the context of sustainable fashion, it most certainly is not. So I ask again, what are you wearing? My educated guess is that at least one of your garments is made up of either polyester, nylon, acrylic, or spandex. For some, the mention of these fibers inflicts indifference, but for the individuals sewing their way through the fashion world, these materials represent quite the opposite. The common thread between these materials is that they are all synthetic fibers.
Unlike biotextiles, synthetic fibers consist of non-biodegradable properties. Your initial thought may be “Yay! My clothes will last forever!” but where will they go when we grow tired of them? Or more specifically, where will they be tossed? It has come to the attention of many fashionistas that a sustainable shift must be made.
Around 40 years ago, the question of sustainable fashion caught and forever captured the attention of Christoforos Dimo, the soon-to-be founder of Uturn. With now up to 10 different locations in Sydney, Australia, Uturn has remained a family-run thrift business with the sole purpose of “creating a space where everyone feels welcome and can express themselves through unique, stylish clothing without sacrificing sustainability.”
Although some of their clothing consists of synthetic fibers, the promotion and encouragement of wearing and reusing second-hand clothing prevents the continued manufacturing of synthetic garments. So, in contributing to Uturn, not only are you getting more bang for your buck in quality, but you are also taking your money out of the pocket of fast fashion production.
On my way home, Uturn caught my eye from the street. Promising sustainability and an arrow pointing the way, I couldn’t help but go in. Walking through, I became engulfed by hangers upon hangers of colorful fabrics and bustling shoppers. While I wasn’t able to buy anything, before heading out, I was able to speak to one of Uturn’s workers, whom I later learned is called Birdie.
“Do you feel like everything here is good quality?” I ask.
“We differ from, like, an op shop or a thrift store in that everything is curated. So obviously our prices are a little bit higher than you might see elsewhere. But everything is actually curated. You won’t see like Shein here, you won’t see, like, Kmart, everything's a bit better quality,” Birdie responds.
I ask Birdie about the information on Uturn’s website, which states that Uturn sources its clothes and accessories through a network of approximately 800 clothing bin hubs.
Birdie turns to double-check a statistic. Looking up, she confirms that in 2025, Uturn saved exactly 200 tons of fabric waste from going to landfills. That’s right…200!
“By shopping with us, you’re contributing to a circular fashion economy, proving that style and sustainability can go hand in hand.” - UTURN
My parting question for Birdie was why is the store named Uturn? I admit this question came from personal curiosity. Birdie confessed she didn’t know exactly, but if she had to guess, it would come from Uturn’s mantra to “Turn the world around”.
“I love that. So it’s just part of, like, the circular fashion,” she expresses.
Uturn successfully flips the narrative, making it your turn to take the fashion industry into a more sustainable direction. My only wish is that sustainable businesses like Uturn remain vigilant in reducing the fast fashion footprint.
Check out Uturn’s website: https://uturn.com.au/
