Pop-up shop in Arnhem Centraal offers 700 free garments to challenge fashion waste
A pop-up clothing store inside Arnhem Centraal station is giving away 700 garments this week, but the goal goes far beyond free secondhand clothing. The initiative aims to expose the environmental and social costs of fast fashion and promote sustainable alternatives, according to Omroep Gelderland.
The temporary shop, open from June 16 through June 22, was launched by Martje Bergsma, a designer and advocate for sustainable fashion. “The fashion industry has concerned me for years,” she told Omroep Gelderland. “With this store, I want to show what’s going wrong in an accessible and creative way—and what the alternatives are.”
The store is part of Juni Modemaand, or June Fashion Month, organized by the Fashion and Design Festival Arnhem (FDFA). The campaign spotlights Arnhem’s role as a fashion city by focusing on education, emerging designers, and sustainable production.
Shoppers can browse secondhand items and one-of-a-kind pieces donated by local designers such as Chapauw and Elsien Gringhuis. Facts and questions on the walls challenge visitors to think critically about the fashion industry. “I don’t want to point fingers,” Bergsma told Omroep Gelderland. “I want to surprise people—with the quality of secondhand, with creativity, and with honest stories about how clothes can also be made.”
The garments come from various sources, including Texcycle, Kledingbank Arnhem, thrift store De Schatkamer, and private donations from Arnhem residents. “It’s really there for the taking,” Bergsma told the newspaper.
FDFA director Susanne Noordegraaf called the store a powerful way to make fashion more visible and to start conversations. “I’m excited to visit the store myself,” she told Omroep Gelderland. “I’m curious how this experience will get people thinking about their buying habits.”
Bergsma said many major fashion retailers now claim to be more sustainable, with initiatives like clothing collection bins and organic cotton lines. But she believes those efforts shift the burden to the consumer. “It’s as if the problem is solved when you recycle or shop ‘green,’” she told Omroep Gelderland. “But the real problem is systemic: too much is produced, too cheaply. What actually helps is buying less, choosing better, and wearing secondhand more often.”
She hopes every item in the shop finds a new owner—but more importantly, that the project leaves a lasting impression. “Even if I just plant a seed in ten people’s minds, this project will have succeeded.”
If all the clothes are taken early, Bergsma has arranged for additional supplies from partner organizations. Visitors are also welcome to bring their own donations.
The pop-up shop is open daily from June 16 through June 22, from 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., inside Arnhem Centraal station.
