AGI Denim is working with its brand partners to gift free jeans to first responders helping fight the spread of the coronavirus.
The Karachi, Pakistan-based denim producer launched Jeans4Heroes, a social media campaign that allows individuals to nominate first responders and essential workers to receive a free pair of jeans by using the hashtag #jeans4heroes. AGI Denim will select winners based on the story and photo submitted.
Winners will be contacted by either AGI or a member of one of its brand partners to facilitate the shipment. The company plans to give away at least 1,000 jeans.
To avoid the enormous carbon footprint of sending individual pairs of jeans from Pakistan, AGI will be coordinating with partners to have them shipped locally.
Jeans4Heroes, said Ahmed Javed, AGI Denim executive director, is an initiative to promote positivity and the value of giving at an unprecedented time. “This is a small way to highlight the good, and honor those who work hard and stood up, so everyone knows they are valued,” he said.
The idea for Jeans4Heroes was developed during the global lockdown—a moment when people had to be creative with socially distant acts of gratitude, Javed noted.
Whereas past crises like 9/11 brought communities together shoulder to shoulder, fear of spreading the coronavirus resulted in phenomena like the apparel industry’s wide-spread shift to PPE production and global applause for healthcare workers—an act that even inspired Ian Berry’s latest artwork.
AGI’s solution is what it knows best: denim.
“During this time, people are anxious and isolated so we wanted to create a meaningful connection,” Javed said. “Our goal is to help people express their gratitude and honor their heroes using what is in our arsenal—jeans.”
“We may have started the initiative but would love to welcome all brands to join us on this journey,” he added.
