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Ask HN: What would you do with 100's of non-reusable suits and fabric?
I work for a company that focuses on custom made clothing. Because the clothing is custom made, when someone returns it, the item is not 'suitable' for resale.
We currently donate to charities, but as we scale this becomes harder and harder to do as we out grow their needs and also starts to devalue our brand.
Does anyone have any good ideas of what we can do with the returns that could possibly pay for itself? I know HN is a lot smarter than me and may have some great Ideas that we haven't thought of.
Thanks!
- brk 16y agoI don't have a great suggestion, but I'm surprised that you allow returns. Allowing refunds on made-to-order items is probably good for customer satisfaction, but can kill profitability.
- suits2go 16y agoWe have this part worked out, we have very few returns and focus on creating exceptional products, but as we scale this is inevitable to grow more.
- cperciva 16y agoI work for a company that focuses on custom made clothing... Based on the title, am I correct in thinking that said custom made clothing is business suits? We currently donate to charities, but as we scale this becomes harder and harder to do as we out grow their needs and also starts to devalue our brand. Which charities are you donating to?
- suits2go 16y agoWe donate to local charities, one that gives to people looking to get back in to the work force and another that helps people going through the prison/juvenile correction process. Yes, suits and business wear as well as some business/casual clothing.
- cperciva 16y agoOk, that's pretty much what I was expecting. Here's an idea which is a bit off the wall but might just work: Offer them to the Grameen Bank or similar microcredit organization. A good business suit in your corner of the world is probably a good business suit on the opposite side of the world; entrepreneurs just escaping poverty are likely to gain credibility and greater success if given even an ill-fitting suit; and this gets the clothing out of your area so that it can't dilute your brand.
- suits2go 16y agoThat is not an off the wall suggestion at all.. I love it. Will look into these Microcredit orgs. Upvote for you.. Thank you very much!
- rdouble 16y agoMaybe you could sell them to schools like FIT to be used in alterations courses?
- suits2go 16y agoThat is another awesome idea, thank you so much!
- rdouble 16y agoAlso consider the Etsy DIY market. You could even scrape Etsy to find people who make stuff out of old clothes and contact them directly. An old girlfriend of mine used to make stuff for women out of old menswear. I think she even ended up turning it into a full-time business with her sister.
- suits2go 16y agoThis is also a good idea! Appreciated!