Soles4Souls Inc., Nashville, the international shoe charity that gives away new and gently worn shoes, announced it will begin providing new clothing to people in need through Clothes4Souls, a charitable division of Soles4Souls. Clothes4Souls will collect new clothing from manufacturers, designers, retail partners and the general public. In addition, gently worn jeans and coats will be accepted during community events held at select retailers throughout the year.
“We are so excited about the much-anticipated launch of our clothing arm and the expansion of our charity to clothes,” said Wayne Elsey, founder and CEO of Soles4Souls. “We have consistently collected clothing from our footwear partners with apparel lines in the past, and now we will have the complete infrastructure to acquire and distribute clothing to people in need worldwide. We’ve already received donations from our friends at Miss Me Jeans, American Apparel, Blac Label Premium, Artisans, New Balance and Converse.”
“We were honored to partner with Soles4Souls in their efforts to bring relief to the victims of the Haitian earthquake,” said Agnes Hyo-Sung Jung, marketing manager for Miss Me Jeans. “And now we are delighted to stand with them as lasting partners with the launch of their clothing division Clothes4Souls,” she added.
The shoe charity has grown from a handful of employees and volunteers into an internationally recognized organization with 40 employees and four warehouses to handle the millions of shoes it distributes each year. It has distributed more than 7 million pairs of shoes since 2004, and Elsey predicts the clothing division will be equally successful.
“Our footprint is changing as we forge forward for the next five years,” said Elsey. “We recognized the overwhelming need internationally and domestically for clothing, and we hope to offer the general public and our apparel partners an avenue to give back more than just footwear.”
Clothes4Souls is proud to announce their exclusive partnership with Smartthreads–a like-minded, socially conscious company that strives to create a positive social change. Their philosophy is 1=1–for every garment they sell they will donate a new garment to people in need via the Clothes4Souls partnership. To learn more about this socially conscious brand visit www.smartthreads.com.
For more information about the Clothes4Souls division please visit www.giveclothes.org.
About Soles4Souls
Soles4Souls is a Nashville-based charity that collects shoes from the warehouses of footwear companies and the closets of people like you. The charity distributes these shoes free of charge to people in need, regardless of race, religion, class or any other criteria. Since 2005, Soles4Souls has given away over 7 million pairs of new and gently worn shoes (currently donating one pair every 9 seconds). The shoes have been distributed to people in over 125 countries, including Kenya, Thailand, Nepal and the United States. Soles4Souls has been featured in Runner’s World, Ladies’ Home Journal, National Geographic’s Green Guide and The New York Times. It has appeared on CBS, ABC, NBC, FOX, BBC, CNN and thousands of regional news outlets across North America. Soles4Souls is a 501(c)(3) recognized by the IRS and donating parties are eligible for tax advantages.
For more information on Soles4Souls, visit www.giveshoes.org.
