B1 reading: Second-hand style

When Sofia started university, she had very little money, so she bought most of her clothes in charity shops. At first she was a bit embarrassed. "I didn't want my friends to know," she says. Ten years later, she runs a successful second-hand clothes shop of her own, and her customers include lawyers, students and grandmothers.

Sofia is part of a big change. Buying used clothes was once something people did only when they had to. Now, for many young people in particular, it is a choice. Apps for buying and selling second-hand clothes have millions of users, and some big fashion brands have started selling used items in their own shops.

There are several reasons for this. The first is price. A good wool coat that cost two hundred pounds new might cost thirty pounds second-hand. The second is the environment. The fashion industry uses huge amounts of water and energy, and many cheap clothes are worn only a few times before they are thrown away. Buying used clothes means fewer new ones need to be made. "Every time someone buys a jacket from me, that's one jacket that doesn't go into the rubbish," Sofia says.

The third reason is style. Many shoppers like the fact that second-hand clothes are different from what everyone else is wearing. "In a high-street shop, you see the same dress on a hundred people," says Kate, one of Sofia's regular customers. "Here, I find things nobody else has."

Of course, there are some disadvantages. You can't always find your size, and you usually can't return things if they don't fit. Shopping second-hand also takes more time. "You have to be patient," Sofia admits. "Sometimes you look for an hour and find nothing. Other times you find something perfect in five minutes."

Sofia now gives talks at schools about how to look after clothes so they last longer. Her advice is simple: wash them less, repair them when you can, and before you buy something new, ask yourself if you will wear it at least thirty times.