Dignity U Wear Reaches Major Milestone

July 13, 2009 - PRLog -- Dignity U Wear, the Jacksonville-based, national nonprofit that provides brand new clothing to men, women and children in need, has distributed clothing valued in excess of $100 million since it was first founded in 2000, said Executive Director, Bob Bryan.

    “This is a real milestone for our relatively young organization,” said Bryan. “Henri Landwirth, our founder, began the organization out of his garage to help provide new socks and underwear to the homeless. It didn’t take long before the organization grew and we began receiving all types of clothing from manufacturers and retailers. Now, nine quick years later, we have provided 5.7 pieces of clothing to 390,000 people throughout the country, valued at $101 million. ”

Landwirth, a well-known philanthropist who survived the Holocaust, still serves on Dignity U Wear’s Board of Directors.

   Dignity U Wear distributes the clothing it receives through social service agencies, schools and other organizations throughout the United States.

   According to Bryan, the nonprofit is a one-stop resource for the apparel industry as manufacturers look to move excess inventory, overruns and seasonal merchandise off their warehouse shelves to make room for new merchandise. “When manufacturers and retailers make clothing donations to us, whether it’s a box or a trailer-load, they not only create the space they need for new product and realize assorted tax benefits, they know we will maximize the distribution of the clothing to assure it gets to the people who need it most. We already have the agency network—the relationships are in place. We can distribute the clothing efficiently and effectively,” Bryan said.

   Most member agencies order the clothing from Dignity U Wear on a gender and size-specific basis. “We’re not shipping off a boxful of random stuff, hoping someone will be able to use it,” Bryan said. “We’re providing exactly what people need when they need it. We’re very unique in that way.” Dignity U Wear is the only nonprofit organization that specializes in warehousing and distributing brand new clothing to people in need at absolutely no cost to them.

Dignity U Wear receives no city, state or government funding. The organization is funded through foundation grants and private donations. Volunteers process 100% of the incoming inventory, providing 95% of the time and labor necessary to accomplish the task.

For more information about Dignity U Wear, call (904) 636-9455 or visit them on the web at www.dignityuwear.org

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