Thread Foundation: Fashionable Charity
With one successful sample sale under their belt, Rhonda Waller Bautista and Misty Ulan are gearing up for the holiday season.
Their new company, Thread Foundation, takes a tried-and-true fashion staple—the sample sale—and uses it as a platform for charitable giving. Both veterans of Los Angeles’ fashion world (Bautista and Ulan have manned high-profile showrooms in the city), the pair saw the potential for philanthropy in fashion.
“I love fashion, but I also wanted to help people. I’ve got 40 pairs of jeans in my closet, but there are people out there with nothing at all,” Bautista said. “For my own personal sanity, I felt I had to try to help people—and what I know is fashion.”
Bautista and Ulan both have design backgrounds but decided against launching a line to benefit humanitarian causes. “What [charities] need is money, not clothing,” Bautista said.
Instead, they decided to use their fashion contacts to organize sample sales, with a portion of their proceeds benefiting various charitable causes for women and children. “What we found is that people want to be involved. They are falling over themselves to help. Nobody has the time to find out about these organizations, but if you explain it to them, many of them are beyond willing to give,” she said. “But there are so many good people in the industry who care about more than just making money or jeans that make your butt look good. We’re trying to create an opportunity for fashion to get involved and make a difference.”
Eventually, Thread Foundation will become a nonprofit organization, but for now it is Bautista and Ulan’s day job and personal quest.
For its first sale, which took place in September in a Fashion District art gallery, Thread Foundation scored donations of cash and clothing from a slew of California brands. Lily McNeal, Paul Frank Industries, Cory Lynn Calter, Rojas, Modern Amusement, Trina Turk, Apolis Activism, Meghan Fabulous, Rachel Pally and Twinkle were among those who contributed to Thread’s inaugural sale.
“It was a great success,” Bautista said. “Sample sales are very lucrative. And brands need to get rid of merchandise, so they are useful for them, too. But we have an added layer to our sales,” she said. “We have this captive audience, and we forcefeed them information about our causes. So we raise awareness as well as money.” Signage and informative pamphlets help Thread spread its message.
This holiday season, Thread will host four events to take advantage of the season’s shopping frenzy. On Nov. 10, it will produce Bag Slavery at the Custom Hotel, located at 8639 Lincoln Blvd. in Los Angeles. The event will feature a silent auction of designer handbags as well as cocktails, music and a sewing bar where attendees can design their own handbag.
Sample sales are scheduled for Nov.17–18, Dec. 7–8 and Dec. 14–15. Locations are still being determined. Ten percent of the proceeds from these events will go to benefit the Polaris Project, a nonprofit organization that fights human trafficking and slavery.
For more information and to contribute to the sample sales, visit www.threadfoundation.com.—Erin Barajas
