Pop up clothing store for the homeless has gone global.

Kudos to the founders of this fantastic way of giving to the homeless.

The Street Store in Capetown, South Africa, is the world’s first rent-free, premises-free, free pop-up clothing store for the homeless, found entirely on the street and curated by the public. Raw cardboard posters with color printing are used, in keeping with the low cost approach and street feel. The homeless people are allowed to choose three items of clothing plus an accessory from the street side racks.

To date more than 263 people from around the world have signed up to host the street store in their community – an idea conceptualised and piloted in the Mother City. The open source material has so far been translated into 9 languages. 

As the Street Store concept rolls out globally, picking up momentum and kudos has not gone unnoticed at the 2014 Cannes Lions Festival. The agency behind the concept – M&C Saatchi Abel - were awarded a prestigious Gold Lion in the Design Category, a Bronze in the Media category, with 6 other shortlists, including the Grand Prix for Good Award.