Street Store

Good News Good Planet

For more delicious news, go to www.GoodNewsGoodPlanet.com, and scroll to bottom for more ways to find the feel good stuff!* "Street Store" We’ve all seen the homeless rummaging in bins and trash cans to find not only food but often, much needed clothing. Clothing for the homeless has long been an issue, and now a dignified solution has been invented. The Street Store was founded by Kayli Lee Levitan and Max Pazak of the public relations firm, M&C Saatchi Abel. The two co-workers witnessed from their office balcony in the trendy neighborhood of Greenpoint, South Africa, a daily divide in the street below between those with resources and those without. This led them to a partnership with the Haven Night Shelter, and The Street Store charity was born. Street Store is a rent-free, building free, pop-up clothing store that is organized and worked by volunteers, to give clothing to the homeless absolutely free of charge. It’s unique, in that the company created downloadable, open source graphics to make posters and cardboard hangers to advertise and display the clothes professionally. For many homeless it’s the first respectable ‘shopping’ experience they’ve ever had. The first Street Store was set up in Cape Town, South Africa in January of 2014, and was supposed to be a one-time event. It was advertised on social media with requests for donations of clothes. That event resulted in over 1,000 bags of clothing being given away that day. That first success led to The Street Store concept going global. As of late 2019, pop-up Street Stores have been opened in over 500 locations in over 200 cities around the globe. Today, anyone can download the artwork and host their own Street Store. It is a perfect example of how an observation, an idea and a little ingenuity can lead to a decreasing the gap between the haves and have-nots, which leads to a better world for us all. #### *Hungry for more of the Good Stuff? Search "Good News Good Planet" on YouTube, Instagram, Patreon, Alexa and wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.