Mississippi Businesses Receive National SBA Awards
Sunday, May 8-14, 2006
Mississippi Business Journal
By: Becky Gillette

The Rogue & Good Company, LLC (excerpt)

Luke Abney and Keith Kinkade, owners of The Rogue & Good Company, had purchased the store only three days before Hurricane Katrina hit. They immediately started working with their suppliers to act as a conduit to donate clothing to people on the Gulf Coast who had lost everything. "When the hurricane came through, we knew we needed to do something to help because we have a lot friends and family on the Coast, and a lot of people who shop with us have families on the Coast," Abney said. "We really didn't know what it was going to turn into when we asked our vendors for donations."

They sent out about 30 e-mails to clothing distributors. These e-mails were forwarded, and the whole effort mushroomed. In all, some 17,000 items worth $3 million were donated. And these were new - not used - clothing. Abney said they felt strongly that people on the Gulf Coast deserved to have some new clothing of good quality.

"The people on the Gulf Coast lost everything," he said. "There was no reason to believe they should get second hand goods."

The Rogue has been in business for 39 years, and Abney said that meant most everyone in the clothing business knows the history of the Rogue. "We have a lot of credibility built up on the name," he said. "Many people in the clothing industry wanted to help after Katrina, but didn't know what to do. We had a plan."

Some of the clothing provided 100 business suits sent to the Mississippi Bar Association for Coast attorneys, and another 100 suits to the 100 Black Men of Mississippi. Clothes were also sent to Yates Construction to help clothe workers who were showing up for work in shorts because their houses were demolished and they had no clothing.

The Rogue took in the clothes, styled and sized them, and arranged distribution. In some cases, people came into the store with specific sizes needed to transport down to people on the Coast. Other times clothing was taken to different camps or outposts on the Coast where survivors were gathering to get new things.

The Rogue also donated a percentage of its gross revenues for September and October, amounting to about $25,000 that was sent to relief effort.