In the fall of 1990, the CFDA Foundation, in conjunction with Vogue magazine, created 7th on Sale, an unprecedented “designer sample sale” event which raised $4.2 million for the New York City AIDS Fund to distribute to AIDS care, services, advocacy, and housing programs. An extravaganza of fashion bargains, 7th on Sale served as a mini-specialty store for four days, with sales merchandise donated by CFDA members and industry friends. Major New York retailers participated, together with thousands of volunteers, and the event was attended by over 15,000 people. 7th on Sale/San Francisco (in 1992) raised $2.6 million for DIFFA to distribute to San Francisco and Bay Area AIDS organizations.
As a result of the extraordinary success of 7th on Sale, the CFDA-Vogue Initiative was established as the CFDA- Vogue Initiative/New York City AIDS Fund to rapidly respond to the emerging needs of community-based agencies serving persons with HIV/AIDS in New York City and to support national AIDS advocacy efforts. With a five-member advisory committee drawn from the fashion industry and from the New York City AIDS Fund, the initiative selected five priorities for funding: supportive housing for persons with AIDS, emergency loans to community-based organizations, programs for women and children, national advocacy and public policy, and unforeseen opportunities where one-time funds can make a difference. The initiative was established with $2.3 million and by early 1994, 32 organizations had received grants totaling $2,286,000.
1995, the CFDA Foundation and Vogue presented 7th on Sale/The Return to New York. Over 17,000 tickets were sold to the public, and the weekend event grossed over $5 million. MTV Networks and Tommy Hilfiger produced a related documentary called “Think Positive.”
2005 marked the return of 7th on Sale after a 10 year hiatus. For the first time ever, thousands of designer pieces, including limited edition, one-of-a-kind, and celebrity-worn items, were available to a worldwide audience. 7th on Sale Online—the world’s largest sample sale—was made possible with the support of Dolce & Gabbana, Kenneth Cole Productions, and Polo Ralph Lauren and by a partnership with eBay, who remained onboard for 2007’s 7th on Sale.
The now semi annual affair returned on November 15, 2007 with the continued sponsorship of Kenneth Cole and Polo Ralph Lauren and the added power of MAC AIDS Fund, Marc Jacobs and TopShop, kicking off with a black tie gala at the Lexington Armory. This time around, in addition to the worldwide arm of the sale, the benefit returned to its roots with three in person shopping days in the heart of New York City. The sold out shopping sessions had lines of eager bargain hunters winding around the block. The gala evening, online sales, and public shopping days collectively raised $4.2 million to be distributed through the CFDA/Vogue HIV/AIDS Initiative at the New York City AIDS Fund.
To date, 7th on Sale has raised more than $17 million for HIV/AIDS organizations.
Over a decade after the pioneer event, the CFDA and Vogue magazine continue to work together to raise and contribute funds to the New York City AIDS Fund.
RECENT GRANTS
February 2010
ADVOCACY AND PUBLIC POLICY
Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University $75,000
Child Center of New York $15,000
Community Health Project $72,000
Discipleship Outreach Ministries $75,000
Fortune Society $50,000
Health and Education Alternatives for Teens (HEAT) $75,000
Latino Commission on AIDS $75,000
The Osborne Association $50,000
Planned Parenthood of New York City $74,000
Public Health Solutions $75,000
Red Hook Initiative $55,000
Voces Latinas $45,000
Women In Need $75,000
STREAMLINING ORGANIZATIONS
Brownsville Multi-Service Family Health Center $100,000
December 2008
ADVOCACY AND PUBLIC POLICY
Asian & Pacific Islander Coalition on HIV/AIDS $40,000
The Corretional Association of New York $40,000
Drug Policy Alliance $25,000
Harlem United Community AIDS Center, Inc. $40,000
Legal Action Center of the City of New York, Inc. $50,000
HIV PREVENTION
After Hours Project, Inc. $40,000
Bellevue Hospital Center $40,000
Carribean Women’s Health Association $50,000
Community Health Action of Staten Island, Inc. $55,000
Community Health Project $55,000
El Puente de Williamsburg $45,000
Gay Men on African Descent, Inc. $50,000
Iris House $50,000
Love Heals $30,000
Make the Road New York, Inc. $50,000
The Osborne Association $50,000
Planned Parenthood of New York City $50,000
The Red Hook Health Initiative $55,000
Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Centers $45,000
Voces Latinas $45,000
HIV SERVICES FOR RECENT IMMIGRANTS & THE FORMERLY INCARCERATED
African Services Committees, Inc. $75,000
Exponents $80,000
The Fortune Society $80,000
VIP Community Services $75,000
Women’s Prison Association and Home $100,000
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
Public Health Solutions $75,000
February 2008
ADVOCACY AND PUBLIC POLICY
Correctional Association of New York $40,000
God’s Love We Deliver, Inc. $30,000
Harlem United Community AIDS Center, Inc. $40,000
Harm Reduction Coalition $40,000
HIV Law Project, Inc. $20,000
Legal Action Center of the City of New York, Inc. $40,000
New York AIDS Coalition $40,000
New York City AIDS Housing Network $40,000
Young Women of Color HIV/AIDS Coalition $30,000
HIV PREVENTION
Community Counseling and Mediation Services, Inc. $35,000
Community Health Action of Staten Island, Inc. $35,000
Discipleship Outreach Ministries, Inc. $45,000
Gay Men of African Descent, Inc. $40,000
Greenhope Services for Women, Inc. $40,000
Love Heals $30,000
Lower East Side Harm Reduction Center, Inc. $45,000
Make the Road New York, Inc. $45,000
Mixteca Organization, Inc. $38,000
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
Medical and Health Research Association $130,000
December 2006
ADVOCACY AND PUBLIC POLICY
Community HIV/AIDS Mobilization Project (CHAMP) $50,000
Correctional Association of New York $30,000
Harlem United Community AIDS Center $40,000
Harm Reduction Coalition $40,000
HIV Law Project $40,000
Legal Action Center of the City of New York, Inc. $40,000
Discipleship Outreach Ministries, Inc. $30,000
New York AIDS Coalition $30,000
Queers for Economic Justice $25,000
HIV PREVENTION
After Hours Project $45,000
Community Counseling and Mediation $35,000
Community Health Action of Staten Island $35,000
Gay Men of African Descent $40,000
Greenhope Services for Women $40,000
Greyston Health Services $40,000
Heights Hill Mental Health Service, Community Advisory Board $50,000
Love Heals $30,000
Lower East Side Harm Reduction Center, Inc. $38,000
Make the Road by Walking, Inc. $49,000
Mixteca Organization, Inc. $38,000
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
Medical and Health Research Association $150,000
OPERATIONAL
AMERICAN FOUNDATION FOR AIDS RESEARCH $100,000
GAY MEN’S HEALTH CRISIS $100,000
GOD’S LOVE WE DELIVER $100,000
NATIONAL BLACK LEADERSHIP COMMISSION ON AIDS $75,000
LATINO COMMISSION ON AIDS $75,000
AFRICAN SERVICES COMMITTEE $50,000
AIDS COMMUNITY RESEARCH INITIATIVE OF AMERICA $25,000
ALPHA WORKSHOPS $25,000
SPECIAL NEEDS CLINIC – NEW YORK PRESBYTERIAN HOSPITAL $25,000
LONG ISLAND ASSOCIATION FOR AIDS CARE $20,000
CABLE POSITIVE $10,000
STAYING ALIVE FOUNDATION $10,000
Advocacy and Public Policy ($360,000)
$ 60,000 to Asian & Pacific Islander Coalition on HIV/AIDS, to advocate for improved HIV prevention and care services for the Asian Pacific Islander community.
$ 60,000 to Correctional Association of New York, to monitor implementation of HIV and Hepatitis C health care services in State and local correctional facilities.
$ 60,000 to Harlem United Community AIDS Center, to train people living with AIDS to advocate for improved HIV counseling and testing in communities of color.
$ 40,000 to Harm Reduction Coalition, to help harm reduction agencies respond to lifting of the federal ban on funding for syringe exchange programs.
$ 60,000 to Legal Action Center of the City of New York, to advocate for repeal of a law criminalizing possession of syringes and to conduct HIV prevention for women and girls of color.
$ 40,000 to National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS, to train faith-based organizations to advocate for improvements in HIV testing policies.
$ 40,000 to New York City AIDS Housing Network, to advocate for fair rental assistance policies for low-income New Yorkers living with AIDS.
HIV Prevention ($886,000)
$ 75,000 to Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, for an HIV prevention program for high-risk adolescents at a charter high school in Hunts Point in the Bronx.
$ 15,000 to Child Center of New York, for a bilingual HIV prevention program for teens at a high school in Elmhurst, Queens.
$ 72,000 to Community Health Project, to expand HIV prevention, testing, and care for transgender individuals.
$ 75,000 to Community Healthcare Network, to expand HIV prevention, testing, and referral for care for transgender individuals.
$ 75,000 to Discipleship Outreach Ministries, for a mobile van providing clean syringes, HIV testing, and prevention messages to drug users in Brooklyn.
$ 50,000 to Fortune Society, to enhance a peer-led HIV prevention program for men being discharged from correctional facilities.
$ 75,000 to Health and Education Alternatives for Teens (HEAT), for an HIV prevention program for young, black men who have sex with men.
$ 75,000 to Latino Commission on AIDS, to strengthen an HIV prevention program for Latino men who have sex with men.
$ 50,000 to The Osborne Association, for an HIV prevention program for female partners of men being discharged from correctional facilities.
$ 74,000 to Planned Parenthood of New York City, to expand an HIV prevention program for girls and young women of color at high risk for AIDS.
$ 75,000 to Public Health Solutions, to develop and test an internet-based HIV prevention program for men who have sex with men.
$ 55,000 to Red Hook Initiative, to open a confidential HIV testing site within a health center in Brooklyn.
$ 45,000 to Voces Latinas, to expand its promotora HIV prevention program for poor women of color.
$ 75,000 to Women In Need, for an HIV prevention program for young girls living in homeless shelters in Central Brooklyn and East Harlem.
Streamlining Organizations ($100,000)
$100,000 to Brownsville Multi-Service Family Health Center, to share a patient accounts specialist with the Bedford Stuyvesant Family Health Center in order to improve billing practices and maximize revenue.