The holiday season is in full swing (my favorite time of year!). While buying and giving gifts is a huge part of the holidays, it’s also common for individuals and companies to make charitable donations during this time of year.
There is no shortage of amazing nonprofits and charities to choose from, but if you’re looking for a unique organization to support this holiday season, check out World Clothes Line (hat tip to Ryan Doyle from the Live to Give Foundation for telling me about WCL). The concept is simple, yet brilliant: You buy clothing from WCL’s online store, and WCL matches the purchase and gives clothing to people in need in a country of your choosing. The WCL team then travels around the world to deliver the clothing.
According to WCL’s website, in cases of extreme poverty, clothing is often one of the first needs that gets ignored. Statistically, more than one billion people in the world live on less than one dollar a day. Almost 2.7 billion people (40% of our population) survive on less than two dollars per day. In these circumstances, daily necessities like food and water take top priority. Take a peek in your closet, then think about how many people in this world don’t even own one nice outfit.
Mallory Brown owns, operates and manages WCL, with the help of a full-time intern. There is no brick and mortar store, but merchandise is shipped from WCL’s office in Farmington Hills, Mich. WCL also has a merchandise partner, CreateMyTee, and international liaisons in Indonesia and Peru.
Mallory has an interesting story about how WCL came to be, and it all started with her meeting a family in Laos. I wanted to learn more about WCL, so I got in touch with Mallory to answer a few questions.
Since the company launched, how much clothing have you delivered to needy people, and approximately how many people have you helped?
WCL opened for business in September 2010. We are close to our first U.S. delivery, which will be followed by deliveries in Peru and Indonesia in the first half of 2011. We’ll travel and deliver clothes when we have enough to clothe an entire group (United States) or village (Indonesia/Peru) of people at once. Our goal is to provide a T-shirt, sweatshirt and pair of pants to each recipient. For some, these may be the first brand new clothes they have ever owned.
Can people choose for your matching donation to go to people in countries other than the United States, Peru or Indonesia (say I wanted you to give clothing to a family in Chile…is that possible?)
Since our team travels to personally deliver clothes to people in need, we specify exact countries for donation deliveries. Peru, Indonesia and the United States were chosen as our first three countries because I’ve personally explored and experienced the need for clothing in these locations. We hope to continually add more countries for delivery — so maybe Chile will be available in the future!
How many times a year does your team plan to travel to deliver the clothing?
As mentioned above, we’ll travel and deliver clothes when we have enough to clothe an entire group or village of people at once. The more we sell, the more often we’ll go!
How do you decide who gets the donated clothing in the country chosen by the purchaser? Do you get sizes of the people receiving the clothing ahead of time?
In the United States, we will deliver to low-income cities and/or regions that have been struck by natural disasters. Our first U.S. delivery will give back to Detroit – the city we call home. We work with two wonderful people – Miguel Gongora and Yude Andiko – to choose villages in Peru and Indonesia that are greatly in need. Clothing is matched for specific demographics of each group in need, so the sizes are appropriate for the recipients.
Additionally, World Clothes Line offers a Tracking Club, which allows customers to follow their “matched” clothes around the world. To join, simply check the “Tracking Club” box at the end of your checkout. Members will be updated with photos, stories and personal messages from those who receive their donated clothes. The $10 fee to join will be used to support our clothing deliveries.
How are you able to match every purchased donation?
Our entire business is structured to facilitate our “Buy 1, Give 1” philosophy and ensure that we can accomplish our philanthropic mission. We are a for-profit company that does not receive any grants or government aid. Through our customer purchases and team dedication, we are able to sustain our business, as well as give to others.
Any big plans for the future that you’re able to share?
We hope to continually expand World Clothes Line to include clothing collections and deliveries for many countries around the world. WCL has received phenomenal support in our initial months of business, and we hope it will become a recognizable global brand. You buy. We give. Together, we clothe the world!
What an awesome way to help people in need, right? I think it’s important to mention that WCL prints original designs on American Apparel clothing, which in my opinion creates the most comfortable clothes! I will soon be the proud owner of this “I wear my heart on my sleeve” T-shirt.
Check out the rest of WCL’s merchandise line, and please consider purchasing something and/or spreading the word about WCL to others.
Have you bought something from WCL? If so, share your experience in the comments. Or, share some of your favorite ways to give back and help people in need during the holidays.
Photo courtesy of World Clothes Line