THE first-ever monthly clothing exchange event in Wrexham, which took place on October 12, has proven to be a huge success.

The ‘Swop Not Shop’ event was held at the Wrexham Enterprise Hub on Queen Square, between the hours of 10am and 12pm.

The event was organised by the new not-for profit organisation, The Wrexham Clothing Exchange, to help combat climate change and reduce fast fashion.

The exchange was opened by Ian Lucas, with Wrexham mayor, Rob Walsh, also in attendance.

Wrexham Clothing Exchange organiser, Sharon Rogers, said: “Swop Not Shop has been a success with people coming from as far as Bala, Shrewsbury and Chester to take part.

“As the event opened, we had a queue of people patiently waiting.

“For some, the appeal was that they could get a whole wardrobe of clothes each month, for others it was about saving money and for the majority it was to help the environment, lower carbon emissions and reduce landfill.

“700 items swapped, which results in 700 less items ending up in landfills and 700 less new items being manufactured.”

Participants had to pay a small £3 entry fee at the event, so that the non-profit venture can pay for clothing storage, rails and equipment in the future.

Ms Rogers, also added: “Everybody I spoke to at the event was happy and told me that they wished an event like this had happened sooner. “Our excellent volunteers had similar feedback.

“We are all looking forward to the next one on November 9.

“If readers would like to find out more just type Wrexham Clothing Exchange into Facebook or Twitter.

“We have a lot of people to thank, first, our Volunteers, who all went the extra mile to make the event a success. Gareth Jones, Carl Turner, Pete Rogers and all at The Wrexham Enterprise Hub for their support as well as being our venue; Jenny Thomas of Renew Sewcials for her repair café; Abode Above, Off The Cuff, St Vincent’s and Sports Direct for the loan of clothing rails; our friends at King Street Coffee Company and Bank Street Social who kindly supported our first event by offering 50% off their hot drinks.”