Clean those closets
Donating clothes will help others dress for success
There’s an adage, “Dress for the job you want, not the job you have.” That can be a difficult hurdle to clear for someone who has no job or is stuck in one that doesn’t pay enough to buy an appropriate wardrobe.
Those at the other end of the spectrum, who have a full-to-bursting closet of nice clothes, can help.
Several organizations are in place to connect those who have more than they need with those who don’t have enough.
Career Closet at the University of Pittsburgh lends clothes and accessories to students. Dress for Success Pittsburgh helps women with professional attire as well as personal and professional development. The nonprofit Career Wardrobe offers 70 percent off the retail price of luxury and designer clothes for men and women.
One local shop, Commonwealth Proper Pittsburgh (label CMMP), is making it particularly appealing right now to join the bandwagon of helping others. Through December, the high-end clothing studio is asking for donations of slightly worn men’s or women’s suits. In return, donors will receive a $250 credit for each suit given to the cause. Also, those who give will receive a 501(c)(3) charitable donation form for tax purposes.
CMMP CEO Craig Arthur von Schroeder, a former soccer player and lawyer, founded his company 10 years ago in Philadelphia and opened a studio in East Liberty in 2017. (There is another location in Atlanta.) Mr. Schroeder said his decision to spearhead a suit drive was sparked by one of the services his firm provides: A consultant will visit a client’s house with an eye toward deciding what part of the client’s wardrobe should be kept and what should be relinquished. The “tossed” suits now can help with someone else’s entry into the job market or a new job.
This kind of mindset can be applied not only to closets but to cupboards and shelves, drawers and chests. What do we have that we do not need or want? What do we own that we can pass on to someone with less?
It’s the time of year to begin thinking of New Year resolutions. Some good prep work would be an inventory of our possessions and our charitable giving. Begin 2019 with some cleaned closets and some contributions to someone else’s success.