Everlane and Thrive Market are Teaming Up to Give Back to Factory Workers

“We sketched out what we wanted: A healthy, affordable, grocery delivery service that our factory workers would benefit from. I didn’t know if that even existed, and then we found Thrive Market,” says Sophia Loscalzo, of fashion startup Everlane.

At first glance, a collaboration between an online fashion startup and Thrive Market might seem a little strange. But we quickly realized we shared similar values in terms of transparency and fair labor practices. In particular, we were totally inspired by the brand’s Black Friday Fund project.

“Black Friday has always been a difficult holiday for us,” says Loscalzo. “The madness that happens in retail on that one day just doesn’t align with our brand values as a company.” So for its first two years in business, Everlane went completely dark for the notorious sale day. The quiet refusal to participate got the company positive attention from consumers, but for its third Black Friday, Everlane decided to do something “more positive than shutting down altogether.”

So the Black Friday Fund was born. Everlane would donate all of the profits made from Black Friday purchases to a new fund—designed to improve the lives of employees in the factories that make the products. This year, the fund yielded $110,650 for the 101 employees of Everlane’s L.A. T-shirt factory. “It’s one of the first factories we started working with, and the employes there make all of the shirts in our line,” says Loscalzo. “So we flew down from San Francisco to ask them, What would make your lives easier? And we were really surprised by the answers.”

The workers asked about healthier lunch options because they were tired of relying on food trucks and vending machines. They also requested on-site doctor visits and after-work English classes (they’re mostly Spanish-speaking). Everlane execs brainstormed about how they could deliver these benefits.

“We loved the idea of Thrive Market boxes and memberships, because they could be delivered to the office, but people could also enjoy them at home with their families,” Loscalzo says. Access to healthy foods that may have been too expensive, plus the convenient delivery aspect made Thrive Market the perfect partner for Everlane.

Every worker at the factory will receive a free Thrive Gives membership, and thanks to the Black Friday Fund, Everlane will sponsor a year’s worth of deliveries. Every month, all 101 workers will get a box packed with healthy, wholesome foods and home products.

We’re so excited to begin this collaboration—and to witness the impact! Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and here on our blog to see how the gift of Thrive can help people live healthier lives.

And we couldn’t do it without you. Thanks to your membership, we’re able to donate Thrive Gives memberships to those in need.

Photo credit: Everlane