The story behind homelessness is something that rarely gets shared, but a chance meeting last week gave Allyson the opportunity to do just that, and re-affirm why we are so passionate about the importance of giving back:

"One day last week when it was pouring with rain, I had parked in the Aldi car park on Union Street and saw a young lady in her early 20's sat outside of Dance Academy. She was not dressed for the weather, soaking wet, cold and dejected – her dog was sat beside her looking just the same.

"I spoke to her as I went past and she asked if I had any change. After talking to her for a while I found out that she had worked her way up from West Cornwall to get away from an abusive relationship - she didn't go to a refuge because she couldn't take her dog with her and she couldn't get emergency B & B via the council for the same reason. She had lost touch with family and friends over the years of being in this controlling relationship so she felt that there was no-one for her to turn to.

"I had quite a few clothes in the car boot that I had planned to take to a charity shop. I offered her to take whatever she needed and she gratefully took the coat, boots and a couple of other items. My dog's coat was also there and as she refuses to wear it I offered that too - this ladies dog was not nearly as awkward as mine and after being dried off was quite happy to wear it. I took her to get some food and drink for herself and her dog, and bought some new underwear as well as some toiletries.

"Because of the nature of her problems she didn't want her name or photo to be used (or her dog’s) as she was very scared of being found. She wasn't sure if she was going to stay in Plymouth or keep moving - she said she wanted to find a place where she could feel as if she was far enough away from her troubles.

"When I left, I gave her the address of a pet food and supplies shop that is owned by a very close friend. I said that if she was in need of anything for her dog then this lady would able to help her with anything and we would pay the bill. I sincerely hope she takes me up on the offer.

"This was only one small act of kindness showed to another simply because I decided to talk to this lady rather than walk past and in doing so I learnt the real story behind her homelessness. And this is why feeding the homeless is one of our give back options with every purchase made, because everyone has a story that deserves to be listened to and in 2017 no-one deserves to be hungry."

We've been very busy here at Robin Hoods Apparel HQ working on our next stage plan to make up some basic toiletries bags which we can donated to homeless shelters.

Whilst feeding the homeless is a hugely important focus for us, especially as we enter Autumn and hot meals become even more important, toiletries enable simple self-care that most people take completely for granted as we live in a world where these items are readily available to us. Something as simple as cleaning your teeth makes a big difference to how you feel and even to your health.

So we are on a mission to make sure that homeless people too are given the same opportunity for self-care. Toiletries along with clean, fresh socks and undies often get forgotten and it’s our plan to start helping to fill that gap.

We’ll keep you posted as our plans progress, but if you have any ideas of essentials we could add to the bags then please do comment below 👇 - we always love to hear from you.

Today we wanted to share with you a little about some of the conservation work we are able to support thanks to your purchases of our clothing, proving that being a clothing brand with ethics really can make a difference.

Supporting The World Land Trust

The World Land Trust is simply amazing and is endorsed by none other than Sir David Attenborough! They buy various portions of land - some in danger - and work with local agencies to preserve the land as well as the people and the proper use of the land. Some land is purchased to be left alone to secure it's future whilst some is purchased to enable endangered species to use it to extend their 'home' area. By supporting the World Land Trust we can secure land for generations to come.

Making a difference

When you make a purchase from us, not only can you be satisfied that you are receiving an excellent quality product, but that you are supporting a company which is actively making a difference. With each clothing item you buy, you can choose from three good causes to help us support, conservation being just one of them. Keep an eye on our blog for future posts discussing the other causes that we support and our plans for the future.

What if everyone pledged to work together to make the world a better place?

At Robin Hoods Apparel, we are passionate about making the world a better place; for us and for our children.
To show that we are actively working towards crafting a better future, when purchasing an item from our online store, we give something back towards one of these global initatives:

* Supporting the homeless by providing a bed or food
* Feeding animals at risk
* Saving our natural environment

If you would like to see how we do, this take a look at this short video from one of our recent visits to Gabels Farm Dog & Cats home.

SPECIAL OFFER - Get 20% OFF and #GiveSomethingBack!

Don't miss your chance to take advantage of our September Special Offer AND help one of these global causes.

1. Supporting animal rescue centres that are really struggling (recommendations welcome!)
2. Organising a late afternoon/early evening Sunday soup run or a very late night Friday/Saturday run.
3. Volunteering to re-plant trees back into areas of the English countryside and helping to offset some of the carbon that we all produce as part of our daily lives.

EVERY online purchase enables us to work directly with these causes. Head over to our shop and see how you can help today!

Use the code: 'U1OT2ZNN7F9K' at the checkout.
**Only valid with until 11th September**

Just imagine... looking good AND Giving Something back?!

Well now you can with our unique range of casual clothing. Every item purchased from our shop helps one of these global causes:

1. FEEDING ANIMALS AT RISK
Most animal shelters rely fully on donations received from the community around them. The funds they receive often rarely cover their expenses. We purchase animal feed and deliver it directly to the shelters ourselves.

2. SUPPORTING THE HOMELESS
We believe that every person has the right to basic human necessities such as a warm bed, food and comfortable clothes. This is why we cook and deliver hot meals to people in need.

3. SAVING THE PLANET
The importance of protecting our natural environment cannot be stressed enough. Faced with the reality of climate change, mass extinction and rainforest eradication, conservation is a cause we can rally behind.

Take a look in our shop and see how you can help one of these three global causes. EVERY online purchase enables us to work DIRECTLY with these causes.