Select FamilyMart convenience stores in Japan have installed boxes to collect used clothing and household goods for reuse, joining similar initiatives taken by retailers, as a step to reduce waste and attract more customers.

In a trial launched jointly with Bookoff Group Holdings, which buys and sells used goods, boxes were installed in around 30 FamilyMart stores in residential areas of Tokyo. Bookoff plans to sell some of the collected items overseas, including to Malaysia.

FamilyMart said that clothing deemed unsuitable for reuse would be recycled into new fibre.

The drive is the first collaborative project since Itochu Corporation, the parent company of FamilyMart, formed a capital tie-up with Bookoff Group in February.

The project builds on FamilyMart’s existing food drive charity programme, which has been implemented in about 4,900 of its 16,400 stores nationwide, where people can drop off excess household food items to be donated to those in need.