Green Cotton

Planet Aid is not exactly the “charity” that we previously thought. In fact, we would like to update our earlier post with the following new information to give you a more well-rounded perspective on this organization. Our sincere apologize to our readers for this oversight, as we were initially excited by the premise and mission of the group. A special thank you to our readership, especially Genna, for bringing these new insights to our attention.

Photosource: www.thebollard.com

First, Planet Aid seems to have a controversial record as a charitable organization, in fact, the Better Business Bureau has refused them as a ‘charity’. One of the ways in which Planet Aid has failed to be a ‘charity’ is the amount of money produced by donated clothing that is put back into development programs. The American Institute of Philanthropy (AIP) gave them an “F” in their December 2006 “Watchdog Report” after finding that Planet Aid only spent just 23 percent of total revenue on programs for the poor. The AIP requires non-profit charitable organizations to spend at least 60 percent of revenue on these programs. The best rated organizations spend up to 75 % of revenue on charitable programs.

Planet Aid also has tenuous connections with the Danish cult-like organization called Tvid. Their founder also started Planet Aid’s partner organization, Humana People-to-People.

Photosouce: www.thebollard.com

Tvid’s Founder, Morgens Amdi Peterson, originated as an alternative school teacher who had received funding from the Danish government to support his school, and then had that funding recinded when the school was found to have ‘cultlike’ qualities.

After some controversies arose surrounding his school, Peterson went underground for two decades! During his decades underground, Danish and American prosecutors believe he “masterminded a global expansion of Tvind that included both non-profits like Planet Aid and for-profit enterprises that now collectively number around 150, with hundreds of millions of dollars in total assets.” Prosecutors allege that funds raised from these organizations are transferred between Tvind’s non-profit and for-profit entities, which share many of the same members and corporate officers.

Peterson was arrested in Los Angeles in 2oo2  and extradited to Denmark where he and other top Tvid officials were to stand trail for charges of tax evasion (11 million) and embezzelment (9 million). However, Peterson and four other Tvid leaders fled Denmark before they were served court papers and are still at-large. It was discovered at this time that Peterson had been living in a multi-million dollar pad on an island off the coast of Florida with a $5 million dollar yacht, the “Butterfly McQueen.”

Butterfly McQueen Yacht

Photosource: www.yachtdevelopments.com

Of course Planet Aid has denied any funny business. We cannot know for sure how involved Planet Aid is in all this, or if funds are being used to support these men or Peterson’s new $5 million dollar yacht, but we do know that Planet Aid is not recognized as a charitable organization by any of the most respected watchdog organizations in the United States or the world, and that just the thought of someone using the needs of poor children in Africa as a front to get rich is repulsive.

So where does this leave us? Well, our opinion is to steer clear of this organization and not to donate a darn thing, but of course we leave it up to you. At the same time, we continue to strongly encourage recycling all your old clothing or let someone else enjoy it. So for now, lets stick to Goodwill and Salvation Army, as well as your local clothing swap. Tell us about your favorite clothing donation option. We want to hear from you.

By: Julia Rea

Photosource: G-spotting.blogspot.com

This week, CNN’s Lisa Respers France wrote a story titled “Thrift fashions on the money during recession.” Her article discusses how consignment stores, thrift shops, and goodwill stores have been experiencing a boost in sales while all other industries seem to be hit hard by these economic times. As people have less money to spend, they are searching for ways to stretch every dollar a little further, and shopping second hand and vintage is the perfect way to do so! Price points at these stores are much lower than new clothing items, and some remain more fashionable than you would think. One can often even find hardly used clothing or accessories from brand names such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Chanel for very low prices at Goodwill and other second hand stores.

“Goodwill” is traditionally misunderstood as a place that offers cheap clothing to people in the lowest income brackets, but actually Goodwill’s true mission is to provide job training and employment services to people with disadvantages or disabilities through the funds raised by selling clothing. Brendan Hurley, senior vice president of Marketing and Communications for Goodwill of Greater Washington, has been working hard to change people’s perception of Goodwill, and has had great success since the viral marketing campaign launched and DC Goodwill Fashion Blog run by Em Hall has taken off in popularity. DC Goodwill Fashion Blog is run by Em Hall and is an EcoChic weekly. Congratulations, Em!

Designer CLU featured on DC Goodwill Fashion Blog

Goodwill’s across the nation have been holding multiple fashion shows a year to try to increase awareness of their products and mission. One especially creative runway show put on by Goodwill/Easter Seals in Minnesota gave 30 volunteer designers 50 dollars to take clothing from local Goodwill stores and create hip new outfits out of them. This event ended up being a great success, attracting over 500 attendees.

Sales have been so good across the thrift store industry that national spokeswoman for the Salvation Army, has cited fears that donations will not be able to meet increasing demands and may result in under-stocked shelves.

Here at Green Cotton we are very happy that so many people are choosing to reuse other’s clothing instead of buying new, as this decreases waste.

As savvy second-hand shoppers located in the Boston region, Green Cotton will take a minute to share our personal favorite consignment shops in the Boston area with all of you.

The Garment District
My jaw dropped when I walked into this store for the first time. My favorite area is the second floor, where all the vintage clothing from the 60s, 70s and 80s is kept. I bought a great sweater and a couple dresses, that I plan to tweak slightly to bring into 2009. All these items were so well priced I just couldn’t say no to any of them. There is also a pile of clothing for $1.50 a pound! Most people only visit the Garment District to look for Halloween costumes, but I would buy my entire wardrobe there and definitely think it’s worth checking out!

Second Time Around is located in Harvard square and also Newbury Street and has some higher end and more contemporary second hand clothing. When I went, they were having a great winter sale and so everything was cheaper, but I think they are generally slightly more pricey than the garment district.

Poor Little Rich Girl In Davis Square offers a combination of vintage and contemporary second hand (and new) clothing, but is also a little more pricey. If you’re looking for something a little fancier or jewelry, I would suggest looking here.

There are Goodwill’s in Davis Square and Central Square, too. Both carry an assortment of well kept second hand clothing, from jewels in the rough to crap but are always worth a peruse if you have an extra hour to kill.

If you are outside the Boston area have no fear, just go to Goodwill Store Locator and type in the town you live and zip code and it will find the closest goodwill to your location in seconds!

By Julia Rea