At the beginning of April, Unsettled popped by the NotJustTrash pop up shop at Sabotage Studios in Shoreditch. Hosted by the shop's owner Molly Hayward, the pop up showcased NJT’s new collection of signature fairy grunge garms, along with a tooth gem station and a jewellery stand from Ugly Accessories. The shop, open from 12pm till 7pm, was jam packed all day with punters, friends and influencers all coming to get their fix of hand picked vintage pieces, reworked and styled by Molly herself. The busy day was followed by a buzzing after party for Molly’s close friends, with three talented DJ’s from The Rising Sun Collective and lots of cameras snapping the guest list in their own NotJustTrash fits. Although mostly selling through it’s hugely successful Depop shop and Instagram page, this was not NJT’s first pop up as Molly also ran a really successful event last year in London, and this week the brand is going international and jetting over to New York to showcase the collection in the states.
NotJustTrash was created out of frustration for the unsustainable fashion industry and owner Molly is extremely passionate about the matter, frequently calling out brands for their slave labour and for stealing independent artists' designs, including her own Butterfly Tees, which have been ripped off by a number of fast fashion brands. Having grown up with five older brothers, Molly spent a lot of her childhood in her siblings' second hand clothes and would frequently accompany her mum to the charity shops to pick out pieces for the family. But when she was a teenager, Molly became something of an influencer and had multiple brands sending her pieces to promote online, and she quickly began to see the problems with the fast fashion industry and gave it up in favour of sustainability.
“I started NotJustTrash after I decided that I no longer wanted to be an Instagram influencer, as it didn’t feel like I was being my true self,” says Molly. “I had tons of clothes I didn’t wear or need so I started a Depop. People soon started following me, asking for more stock and in time I turned it into a store.”
And since its humble beginnings in 2015, the shop has grown tremendously, currently hosting over 50K followers across the brands Depop and Instagram pages. Following the success of NotJustTrash, Molly has subsequently branched into a prosperous career in styling, having dressed many of her famous friends such as PinkPantheress in her iconic ‘Just For Me’ music video and a whole host of shows and videos for the indie superstar Beabadoobee and her band. Molly is quickly becoming a huge alternative style icon as a pioneer of the popular ethereal Y2K aesthetic, influencing the image of many prominent stars, and has even been featured in Vogue Magazine. Molly offers her expertise and unique fashion sense to her many followers through personal styling bundles on the NotJustTrash Depop site, where customers can request an outfit with a particular vibe and Molly will put together something special for them with vintage pieces from her own collection.
In addition to the the original second hand and upcycled clothes, Molly has also started to make and sell her own designs, including the previously mentioned Butterfly Tees and the brand's signature Snail Hats, of which have been seen gracing the heads of mega stars including Willow Smith and Matty Healy of the The 1975. “I think I always had the image that NJT would be a place I sell my own designs, and selling the vintage helped me to get to this place,” Molly tells us.
But selling her own designs is by no means the pinnacle of NotJustTrash, as Molly has exciting ideas for the future with plans to “expand the store further than clothing”. “I want to turn [NotJustTrash] into a concept store and grow our community by throwing events and creating safe spaces for people to have fun and make new friends.” Molly also tells us she wants to “collaborate with more brands and creatives to create more visuals, collections and even music.” Molly’s creativity and drive are never ending and its clear that she has a bright future ahead of her and we for one are excited to see what’s coming next for NotJustTrash.
If you missed the pop up, don’t fret, just head to NotJustTrash on Depop to find a whole host of second hand fits and if you happen to be in New York this week, Molly is hosting another pop up this Sunday (10th April) from 12pm - 8pm at Bowery Showroom.
Commenti