SixEight Life

{SCS} Threads 4 Thought

Have you ever had one of those “I need a new shirt” days?

Me too.

I mean, you probably don’t NEED a new shirt. Maybe you discovered a rip in your red fitted t-shirt, or you got a new skirt that needs a specific color to compliment it perfectly. Or you’ve had a bad day and you would just really like to have something new and cute to wear. If you’re like me, you probably have way more than 7 shirts in your closet so it could be argued that we don’t NEED anything clothing related.

But regardless, sometimes you just want that basic, classic t-shirt. So, the desire has been established, you are set on getting a new shirt, now, where do you go? Target? Wal-mart? Old Navy? Or maybe you’ve got a bit more disposable income and can splurge on Gap, Banana Republic, or even a fancy pants store like Sacks Fifth Avenue. If you can afford to shop at Sacks Fifth Avenue for a t-shirt, please consider donating to my “Emily would like four specific pair of TOMS for the summer” fund.

Anyway, I digress. The bottom line is that sometimes you just want to run into that store and get a simple fitted shirt. Or leggings, or a something casual for that fun summer beach trip. It’s a quick, run in and run out kind of deal.

How do we keep our “quick shopping” ethical and slave free? Shopping at Gap and Old Navy is certainly a great place to start, since they have a decent Free2Work rating, but I’d like to introduce you to a fantastic ethical company that can easily satisfy that “I need a new t-shirt now” situation.

I stumbled across Threads 4 Thought at the Harry’s Whole Foods in Marietta, GA. I was excited to read about their business platform. They believe that they can remain ethical, help people, and stay “green” while selling great items of clothing. They even contribute a portion of their proceeds to two great non-profit organizations. Their basic t-shirts cost $10, which is about the same as your standard Target shirt. They fit great and last a long time. I love my shirts I’ve purchased at Harry’s. They have a lot of other products that are great too, I can just speak for the excellence of their t-shirts as those are my primary purchases.

I like to ensure that the companies I buy from have ethical standards, so I emailed Threads 4 Thought to make sure. Here’s the response I received:

“Our garments are manufactured in several countries, including the United States, Mexico, Pakistan, Philippines, India, Sri Lanka and China. To the best extent possible, we use sustainable materials in our garments that are certified by reliable third-party agencies. We also endeavor to use the most sustainable practices in the manufacturing process so as to minimize the impact on the environment.

We only work with factories that respect their employees and treat them humanely and fairly. That means that the factories that strictly adhere to local laws, pay a fair and legal wage, do not hire underage workers, and do not exceed the legally allowable working hours. Many of our factories go a step further and offer workers added benefits, in fact one of the factories has an organic farm on site that provides fresh produce and makes land available to their employees.”

You can check out their business platform and all their great products on their website, and you can see where there are stores near you. There are eight listed for Georgia, many in Metro Atlanta. And I know I’ve seen their products at a few different Whole Foods in the city as well. So the next time you need a quick shirt, you can head out to a Threads 4 Thought retailer. You can be confident that your purchase is not contributing to slave labor, and proceeds from your purchase will go to helping others.

Win, win.