Global Street Store Day is launched to celebrate the 700th Street Store

On the 14^th of January 2014, M&C Saatchi Abel hosted the first ever Street Store event in Cape Town – a rent-free, premises-free, pop-up clothing ‘store’ for the homeless. The Street Store is stocked with donations from the public and the homeless can enjoy a dignified ‘shopping’ experience for free.  

“We didn’t want to keep the idea to ourselves, or to leave it as a once-off event, so we went open-source. This means that anybody, anywhere in the world can host a Street Store event in their community,” says Kayli Levitan, Creative Group Head. To date, hundreds of Street Store events have been hosted around the world, clothing an estimated 700,000 homeless people with 1,7 million items of clothing.

“When you break down the numbers, there have been 700 Street Store events hosted over 1460 days since the concept was launched.  This works out to a Street Store being hosted every two days somewhere in the world. It endorses the scale and reach of the idea and the potential to make a real difference and amplifies the inherent generosity and empathy of people towards those in need,” adds Jason Harrison, MD of M&C Saatchi Cape Town.

To celebrate the milestone of reaching the 700^th Street Store, M&C Saatchi Abel are launching World Street Store Day on 10 December – a day where people from around the globe are encouraged to host a Street Store event at the same time, creating a more connected future.

“Consider the potential – 1 day when 7 continents, 195 countries and 4416 cities can connect for a good cause just as the festive season begins, a time of giving,” adds Gordon Ray, Executive Creative Director, Founding Partner.

M&C Saatchi Abel will be hosting an event at the place it all began, outside the Salesian Institute on Somerset Road, Cape Town, from 10:30am time to 2pm. To host an event or find one in your area, visit www.thestreetstore.org for information or check them out on Facebook at The Street Store.