Our culture is wasteful. Our carbon footprints grow every year with each disposable water bottle, each new car and with each new pair of shoes.

On Nov. 4, four resale boutiques will throw their 4th annual Boutique Crawl. The buy, sell, trade shops that will be participating are Bootleg, Three-Sixty Ecotique, Red Umbrella, and Rouse & Revolt.

Susan Reed, owner of Bootleg, came up with the idea for a boutique crawl after working as a bar manager and bartender before opening her shop. Inspired by the bar crawl craze and other late night shopping events she thought that a bar crawl to the different downtown resale shops could work well.

“When I first opened there were a lot of resale shops like mine downtown. So we did the first one and it was a so successful and really fun,” Reed Said.

Each shop offers specials including discount racks, store wide sales, raffles and door prizes. Along with the deals, the stores will be providing drinks, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, as well as music.

All of the shops are veterans of this event except for one: Rouse & Revolt. This shop will be hosting their grand opening at the start of the crawl.

“We started this business in October. We’re a buy, sell, trade company that is modeled after businesses like Crossroads and Buffalo Exchange. We hope to bring something different to Chico by carrying everything from Forever 21 up to Kate Spade,” Owner of Rouse & Revolt, Nicholle Haber said.

Both Haber and Reed seek to create companies that not only provide customers with an exceptional resale service but with a means of sustainable shopping.

“Clothing is the second most wasteful industry. The petrol chemicals used and the waste product is very high,” Reed said. “Resale is something that perpetuates the culture of recycling.”

In a culture of indulgence and waste, there needs to be a way to shop that is not wasteful.

“The idea of recycled fashion is really sustainable, we live in a culture of excess and there is no reason for this. We’re creating a sustainable future while giving back to the community,” Haber said.

Haber not only creates a sustainable culture by operating a resale shop, but she does so by donating what she doesn’t sell and pledging to donate a percentage of Rouse & Revolt’s monthly profit to a local non-profit. She also wants to create an inclusive culture by declaring her business as not being sizest.

“I have made it my mission to carry fashionable triple extra large clothing for men and women,” Haber said.

In addition to creating enjoyable, sustainable, shopping experiences, the businesses participating in this event are in it to help one another.

“We believe business drives business,” Dana Prichard, Co-owner of Red Umbrella, said. “We love the camaraderie between boutiques downtown, no one is in competition with one another. Everyone has their own niche.”

The crawl takes place Nov. 4 from 6:30-9:30 p.m. in Downtown Chico at each of the respective boutiques.

Anna Porretta can be reached at [email protected] or @theorion_arts on Twitter.