Gildan's "I Support..." program is back!

In 2010 Gildan asked, "Can a T-shirt make a better world?" and the answer from the apparel and promotional products industry was an emphatic YES! With well over 100,000 votes for close to 400 charities nominated, the program was an overwhelming success and resulted in a $100,000 donation from Gildan to Homeboy Industries, a charity selected and supported by industry members. Based on this positive response Gildan is pleased to announce that they will continue the program into 2011 with the launch of "I Support..." 2.0.

"Tell us Your Story!"

"The warm reception of the "I Support..." program was very gratifying," said Garry Bell, Vice President Global Marketing for Gildan. "Our goal for initiating the program was to recognize the great work being done by charities in North America and raise awareness for them in these challenging economic times. We feel that we achieved that. We realize, however, that operating budgets are still tight for these organizations and that there is still a lot of work to be done."

Starting in April of 2011 Gildan will again run the highly successful "Tell us your Story" campaign funded by sales of their SoftStyle Men's and Ladies' T-shirts (style 64000 and 64000L respectively).

Similar to last year, participants will be asked to nominate their favorite charity at facebook.com/genuinegildan by sharing a story about how that charity is having a genuine positive impact in the community. Participants are then encouraged to have friends, family and business associates vote to increase their charity's chances of being selected. Nominated charities will be entered into consideration to receive a donation from Gildan.

In 2011 the "I Support..." program will offer not just one but 5 donations, increasing the opportunity for a charity to be selected. Donations will range from $10,000 to $50,000 USD and will be based on the individual charities' demonstration of the characteristics of Accountability, Sustainability and Impact, lynchpins to Gildan Genuine Stewardship philosophy.

"After reading the stories submitted last year it was very difficult to have to limit our choice to only one charity," said Karla Schoenfeld, Director of Marketing for Gildan. "By increasing the number of donations we hope to offer more motivation to participate as well as drive awareness for a broader array of charities."

To nominate a charity or to learn more visit facebook.com/genuinegildan.