Establishing an eco-friendly clothing line

Tag : organic tee shirt


For the past couple years, the 24-year-old Chico native andentrepreneur has had his hands full, juggling a successful realestate magazine and other business pursuits.

But one of his latest undertakings lies close to his heart, becauseit will allow him to help others.

Khaki is founder of Humanity Ink, a fledging company establishingan eco-friendly clothing line with a twist. In addition to offeringthreads made from sustainable materials, the business is donatingpart of its proceeds to charitable organizations.

“I always wanted to do a clothing line,” he said,“but I wanted to give back, too.”

Humanity Ink’s concept is somewhat similar to the ongoing international campaign known as RED, a partnershipbetween retail giant Gap and Global Fund to help African women andchildren who are affected by AIDS. Half of the money generated bythe sale of T-shirts and other RED-themed products goes directly tothe fund.

After a lot of research and deliberation, Khaki and his businesspartner have selected Earth Share as their first beneficiary. Theorganization will take in half of the profits from the sale of thecompany’s first product, a green T-shirt bearing HumanityInk’s logo and a nature-inspired design.

Hard-core environmentalists may be a bit put off, since the clothesare purchased from an international manufacturer, but the fact thatthey are constructed from sustainable materials and screenprintedlocally probably tips the scale in favor of Humanity Ink. Made of70 percent bamboo and 30 percent organic cotton, the high-qualityshirts also describe the company’s motto of providingfashionable earth-friendly threads while supporting environmentalcauses.

At this time, the green shirt is the only product for sale on theirWeb site ( www.humanityink.com ). However, five other shirts are in the works, and Khaki said eachwill benefit some type of humanitarian or environmental cause. Abrown one, for example, is tied to Heifer, an internationalorganization working to end world hunger by providing impoverishedfamilies with a sustainable source of food (a cow) rather thanshort-term relief.

Khaki was a senior at Chico State and had been dabbling in various business ventures when alife-changing event about a year and a half ago became the catalystfor starting Humanity Ink.

He and his then-girlfriend were traveling on Highway 99, returningfrom a Christmastime shopping trip in Sacramento, when a drunkendriver speeding at 85 mph hit them and another vehicle ahead ofthem head-on on a remote stretch of the highway. Miraculously, noone perished in the crash, but the event still marked a turningpoint in his life.

“It kicked me into gear and made me realize how short lifecould be,” Khaki said. “And it made me want to domore—more than day-to-day Chico life.”

He immediately set off to find a way to meld his business ideaswith philanthropy. Humanity Ink developed when his businesspartner, Robby Busick (who also works at the CN&R), shared hisconcept of selling T-shirts with an additional goal of helpingcharities. Eventually, the discussions led to a full line ofclothing. By spring Khaki had earned his psychology degree, and bythe following spring, on Earth Day (April 22) in fact, the firstbatch of shirts was ready to go.

These days Khaki is working tirelessly to promote Humanity Ink, traveling every few weeks to Santa Monicato meet with interested buyers and get celebrity endorsements. Theclothing line is aimed squarely at the young, hip, socially awaremarket.

Fashion and gossip magazine readers shouldn’t be surprised ifthey see the Chico-based company mentioned in upcoming issues sinceShia LaBeouf of Indiana Jones and Transformers fame and Heroes star Hayden Panettiere have reportedly signed on to sport theclothes. As for Chico boutiques, Khaki says a few of them could beselling Humanity Ink clothes within the next few months.

Unlike T-shirts of similar quality, which Khaki said often sell forupwards of $140, Humanity Ink’s themed products will retailfor about $35. After all, he said, more people wearing them meansmore money and exposure for the charities.

While the company is young and is still working on what the linewill comprise, Khaki mentioned jeans, hoodies and other productsmade mostly from organic, recycled and other sustainable materials.The plan is to donate a percentage of the proceeds from the fullline to worthy projects as well.

“We’ve invested significant amounts of time and moneyinto what this is going to be,” he said. “It’smuch more than a T-shirt line.”