Megapaca is a Guatemalan used clothing chain that relies on huge loads of discarded clothes to stock its stores. The “pacas,” massive pallets of mixed clothing and shoes from the United States, are shipped to their sorting facility and dug through, classified, and priced by an army of workers. In recent years the company has expanded dramatically, with over 50 stores in Guatemala and around 3,000 employees. Cheap, quality clothing is important for Guatemalans, who live in one of the most unequal countries on earth, nearly 60% of whom live below the poverty line.
Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg
