A New Brunswick native with an impressive clothing collection wants to give it away.
Andrew Libby is trying to find a charity that's the perfect fit.
Libby is a real estate agent by trade, but just recently he's been trying to offload something other than a house.
Suits, sports coats, pants, dress shirts, ties the odd hat, and sweaters.
More than $350,000 worth of brand new menswear neatly folded into boxes has been tucked into storage for the last two and a half years.
“I believe the exact number is $353,600,” Libby says. “The goal is to find an organization who provides clothing free of charge to men who are either struggling to get back into the work force or are homeless so they can be well dressed for their interview. A well-dressed man has confidence.”
It all started in 2016 when Libby first purchased Distinct Designers from a friend dealing with health concerns.
“The purpose was just to help out my friend to close his store and then open up a men’s discount liquidation centre for a couple months that lasted four,” Libby said.
Libby’s had plenty of suggestions of where he should donate the clothes, but none of them have been the right fit.
“There are some great organizations out there where you can buy second-hand clothing and I encourage anyone out there if you have an extra $25 or $50, go to a Salvation Army or a Frenchys or a thrift store and purchase clothing and donate it to a local homeless shelter.”
All Libby's hoping for in return when he does find the right charity?
“It's not something that I'll likely see the impact or the benefits to right away, but over the months and the years, I'm hoping that I may get an email or a letter or a message from someone who was given this clothing for an interview and got the job and hear their story and how that helped them get back into the work force.”
But for now, Libby is still shopping around for the perfect organization to give his big-hearted donation.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Eilish Bonang.
