Clothing from Goodwill is about to go somewhere it’s never gone before: up and down the runway at an “Eco Couture” Fashion Show Gala this June.
Goodwill of Southern Los Angeles County is asking 12 local clothing designers to create art from attire in order to compete for a $2,000 grand prize. The materials: donated clothing from Goodwill stores. The budget: $100 per designer. The goal: highlight the longstanding sustainability and community efforts from Goodwill while encouraging people to repurpose their clothing.
“For us, it’s really important to share with our neighbors and our community that when you donate to Goodwill, good things happen,” said Kimberly Hall, President and CEO of Goodwill Southern Los Angeles County. “We’re focused on recycling, repurposing and reusing. When you donate or you shop, good things happen every time and this is our opportunity to share that.”
Through the nature of Goodwill’s operations, the store has been focused on sustainability for over 90 years, Snell said. By accepting and reselling people’s used clothing, furniture, toys, electronics and more, their stores kept 5 million pounds of material out of the landfill in 2022.
“It speaks to what you can do from a designer standpoint with $100 to create two looks, so we wanted to set that limit so that they can be creative, but stay within a budget.”
Kimberly Hall, President and CEO of Goodwill Southern Los Angeles County.
Not only do the stores help aid the environment, but they also contribute to the communities in which they reside. Every purchase at Goodwill sends 87 cents back into the community in order to hire more local residents.
“It’s a win-win because you’re creating jobs when you donate and you shop and you’re saving our planet,” Hall said.
For the past six years, Goodwill has been planning a way to highlight its sustainability efforts in a fun, creative way. The Eco Couture Fashion Show Gala is the result of that.
Twelve designers will spend the next few months digging for treasures at Goodwill locations, with a $100 budget in order to create two distinct looks. One outfit must be “ready to wear,” as in something casual someone would wear to school or work, while the other outfit will be couture, or something that’s runway ready and “extraordinarily creative.”
“It speaks to what you can do from a designer standpoint with $100 to create two looks, so we wanted to set that limit so that they can be creative, but stay within a budget,” Hall said.
Over 36 designers sent applications and ideas to Goodwill, then a committee narrowed down the twelve that will be competing. There will be three judges at the fashion show who will choose a winner in real time to receive the $2,000 grand prize.
Judges include the founder of Sovereignty Company Dr. Corneil Neil Montgomery, Long Beach-based costume designer Hilde Byrne and dancer/influencer Blair Kim. Designs are going to be judged on a number of criteria, including how much the designer has changed the original look of the clothing used and how creative the new designs are.
Residents are invited to Goodwill’s Eco Couture Fashion Show this June to see the creative, recycled designs sashay down the runway. There will also be an after-party following the show that will be open to all those who attend.
Mix and Mingle tickets cost $50 and include general seating and access to a cash bar. VIP tickets cost $150 and include premium seating, a private bar, a drink ticket and a buffet dinner. There will be exclusive seating, marketing during the show and more drink tickets for those who wish to sponsor the event.
Goodwill’s Eco Couture Fashion Show Gala will be at Ovation Square at 350 Pine Ave. on June 24 from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online.
A previous version of this article stated that Donna Snell, director of Marketing and Sales spoke to the Signal Tribune. Kimberly Hall spoke to the Signal Tribune about the Eco Couture event and the article was updated on April 30. The Signal Tribune regrets this error.
1 comment
Comments are closed.