'Goodz' Manhattan Pop-Up Boutique Benefits Female Artists Around The World And Nonprofit The Pad Project
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A coalition of young women - including many in the Tri-State Area - are selling unique, handmade items in an effort to give back to others in need.
Their online shop will be a Manhattan pop-up boutique for the next two days and CBS2's Jenna DeAngelis got an early tour Thursday.
Everything, from embroidered T-shirts to hand-painted sneakers and records repurposed as home decor, is handcrafted by women from around the world.
All of the artists were brought together by Stella Gray, who came up with the idea for the online marketplace Goodz in September.
"Right now, you're in our first, physical pop-up store," Gray told DeAngelis.
It started when the coronavirus pandemic hit.
Gray, a Manhattan resident, was sent home from college and wanted to help health care heroes.
"I actually started a business, Tie Dye for Good, and I ended up selling over 900 pieces of tie dye and actually raising $50,000 for Montefiore," Gray said.
That led to another idea.
"Why not create a site that's an aggregate of all of these talented female artists from around the world?" she said.
For the next two days, 15 of the women set up shop at the pop-up on the corner of 26th Street and 11th Avenue in Chelsea.
"We're just like a group of young women giving back to women around the world," said Cate Ghirardini, owner of Record Land.
Anything purchased here or through the online shop supports the artists and The Pad Project, a nonprofit.
"In the United States, we give period products and supplies to homeless shelters, domestic abuse shelters, schools," said The Pad Project's executive director Melissa Berton.
The organization also tackles period poverty, which caught Gray's attention when she saw the documentary "Period, End of Sentence" on Netflix.
"We've raised over 10,000 pads for The Pad Project, and I specifically donated them to women in the U.S. because COVID really exacerbated an inability for women to receive menstrual products," Gray said.
The pop-up at 601 W. 26th Street (Starrett-Lehigh Building) is open until 9 p.m. Thursday and from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday.
Twenty percent of the proceeds will be donated to The Pad Project.
Click here to shop Goodz online. Click here to find Goodz on Instagram.