News Release w/ Email Pitch
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 4, 2019
Contact: Sara Huffman
Director of Communications
Cell: 213-422-XXXX
Email: huffmansv@vcu.edu
Ethical Style Collective Wants Your Old Underwear
RICHMOND, Va. – Frayed tablecloths. Ripped pantyhose. Stained underpants. All of these unsavory items are just begging to be thrown in the trash. However, if they end up in the garbage, they’ll join the estimated 16 million tons of textile waste currently sitting in landfills.
Instead of tossing their old clothes and linens, the Ethical Style Collective hopes Richmonders will donate them to science.
During the month of November, the Science Museum of Virginia will feature an exhibit about textile recycling, complete with special machinery that will clean, sort and process old textiles into new yarn. There’s just one catch: they need old textiles to run through the machine.
That’s where the we come in. Partnering with Towne Bank, we’re hosting a textile drive on Saturday, November 23, 2019 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The drive will take place in the side parking lot of the Science Museum of Virginia, 2500 W. Broad Street in Richmond.
“Over and over, we hear from people that they want to recycle their unusable clothes and home linens, but don’t know how to do it,” said Ethical Style Collective co-founder Rupa Singh. “We figured this would be the perfect opportunity for people to purge textile clutter, but in an environmentally-friendly way.”
The event is free, open to the public, and will occur rain or shine. Participants are encouraged to bring as many items as they wish. Everyone who donates will receive a 20% off coupon to use at Carytown second-hand clothing shop Ashby.
“While textile recycling isn’t going to magically fix the current environmental and human rights issues that fast fashion creates, we’re hoping this event will inspire people to slow down and consider their consumption habits,” said Singh. “We’re delighted to be partnering with TowneBank to bring this unique experience to Richmond!”
# # #
Ethical Style Collective
Started in 2018 by Lisa Hutchinson, Kelly G, April Perrin and Rupa Singh, the Ethical Style Collective starts conversations around ways to buy, care for, and eventually dispose of clothing. They host clothing swaps to prove that old clothes can have new lives. They connect shoppers to thrift and consignment stores around Richmond and Henrico County. They work with local government to make textile recycling easier. facebook.com/ethicalstylecollective/
TowneBank
TowneBank began in April 1999 with start-up capital from over 4,000 shareholders, 86 employees, and 66 directors to open three banking offices. Now, with 41 banking offices spanning from Charlotte to the Outer Banks in North Carolina and from Hampton Roads to Richmond in Virginia, we have become one of the largest banks headquartered in Virginia. Though, we've never lost sight of our roots: local decision-making; community board leadership; volunteerism, philanthropy, and a culture of caring — it's all part of the Towne experience. www.townebank.com
Science Museum of Virginia
Through experiential exhibits, awesome artifacts, interactive technologies, innovative programs, dynamic films, impressive live animals and interesting lab demos, the Science Museum of Virginia inspires hundreds of thousands of guests each year to enrich their lives through science. The Museum is a catalyst for inspiration, a place that sparks curiosity, encourages discovery and generates ideas in science, technology, engineering and math.
The Museum features permanent hands-on exhibits about wellness, innovation and speed—to name a few—and hosts touring exhibitions from around the world. 2500 West Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23220-2057. www.smv.org
Ashby
A locally owned, resale clothing store in Richmond, Virginia, Ashby opened its doors in 2012 after experimenting as a weekend outlet for its sister store Clementine. They have a simple mission: create an engaging shopping experience and support their local community by offering an affordable alternative to traditional retail. 3010 West Cary Street, Richmond, VA, 23221. www.ashbyrva.com
EMAIL PITCH TO SIERRA FOX AT WRIC-TV (https://www.wric.com/author/sierra-fox/)
EMAIL SUBJECT LINE: ESC wants Richmond’s old clothes – even the underpants!
Hi Sierra,
I saw on your WRIC bio that you’re looking for local, RVA stories and I wanted to share one with you that I know is going to be really cool.
The Ethical Style Collective is partnering with TowneBank to run a clothing/textile drive for the new textile recycling exhibit at the Science Museum of Virginia. We’re looking for locals to clean out their closets and bring all unwearable/unusable clothing and linens to donate.
We hear from a lot of people that they want to ethically dispose of old textiles, but they don’t know how. This is a really easy and fun way for them to do that.
Also, we’re also hoping the huge piles of old textiles we’ll collect will be a visual reminder for people to slow down and become more conscious about their consumption of clothing and linens.
Attached is the news release. If you need more information, please don’t hesitate to reach out. My cell is 213-422-XXXX.
If you’re not interested, but have a colleague who might be, I would love to get his or her contact information.
Thank you!
Sara Huffman
Director of Communications
Ethical Style Collective
