A UF student is expanding his clothes donation program in Bangladesh.
Robert Felder founded Bearbottom Clothing, an online clothing company, in 2014 after a trip to Bangladesh. During the trip he toured a local factory and it inspired him to start his company, which donates a pair of shorts to a child in Bangladesh for every pair bought, the 21-year-old said.
The company now donates shorts to children in poverty all over the country, from hospitals in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, to train stations in poorer areas, he said. When Felder first started the company, only factory workers’ children received the shorts.
He chose to have his factory in Bangladesh to give jobs to the community, the UF business management and food and resource economics senior said.
“To date, we’ve donated tens of thousands of shorts, which, to put into perspective, is more than the number of people that fill the O’Dome,” Felder said.
Jacob Visoky, 22, said he likes the concept behind the company.
“I think it’s important for new companies to have a sense of corporate and social responsibility — to give back to the communities that are helping to manufacture their products,” the UF business management senior said.
Felder said he plans to continue expanding his company and his mission after he graduates next Fall.
“I want to retain the mission of donating shorts to kids in need,” he said.
Robert Felder (far left) poses for a photo at the factory day care in Bangladesh on June 3, 2015. The 21-year-old said he founded his company, which donates paris of shorts to children in poverty, after visiting a local clothing factory.
