Reviewed by: Pat Byington
She won Innovation Depot’s 1st-ever LGBTQ+ pitch competition—find out about her unique store
Sarah Randolph (center, above) is a queer woman in Birmingham, Alabama, who’s on a mission to bring a unique consignment store to Birmingham. She just won Innovation Depot’s first-ever LGBTQ+ pitch competition, giving her $500 plus three months of onsite coworking. Keep reading to learn more.
About rEVOLVEr resale + the LGBTQ+ pitch competition
Sarah Randolph has a vision to bring a first-of-its-kind gender-free consignment shop to Birmingham, with three main goals in mind:
- Address the waste—estimated at 80 pounds of clothing and textiles per person, per year in the US—generated by fast fashion by providing second-hand goods.
- Create a safe space for LGBTQ+ folks + others through gender-free merchandising—the store will have pants with pants, dresses with dresses, etc. so you can mix and match as you choose, with no “his” or “hers” section.
- Create financial opportunities for people in the community to sell their goods or local artwork in the shop. Consignors can also choose to have a portion of their proceeds go to a local environmental or social justice organization each month.
Love this idea and want to make it happen? Here’s how you can help:
- Support their GoFundMe
- Go to their fundraiser:
- When: Friday, February 10, 7PM+
- Where: Clubhouse on Highland, 2908 Highland Avenue South, Birmingham, AL 35205
- What:
- Silent auction: 7-8
- Live performances including drag + burlesque: 9+
- Cost: $20
- Follow them on social: Instagram | Facebook
About the inaugural Central Alabama LGBTQ+ Entrepreneurship Conference
- What: a one-day event with speaker panels, a keynote address, a pitch competition + a celebratory happy hour
- When: Saturday, January 21, 2023
- Where: Innovation Depot
- Supported by: LGBTQ Fund at the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham, Tech Equals, a TechBirmingham affinity group
- Winners:
- rEVOLVEr resale: the Grand Prize Winner received $500 + 3 months of coworking.
- Neo Communications Consulting: the 1st Runner Up received $250 + 2 months of coworking.
- Expatsi: 2nd Runner Up received $250 + 1 month of coworking.
“We were thrilled to be able to bring this event to fruition for the Birmingham community. LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs are statistically more likely to encounter disadvantages on their journey to becoming a founder, so we envisioned this event as a way to help combat those challenges and provide support to the community.”
Brit Blalock, Director of Marketing for Innovation Depot + founder of two local LGBTQ support organizations
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