Buy a pair of jeans, or two ...

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Updated: August 4, 2011 4:20PM

Tired of buying popcorn and cookie dough as fundraisers for your school?

Naperville mom Mary Dismore was, too, so she decided to do something about it.

Recently laid off from the corporate world, Dismore took her experience from a former eBay business and turned it into a fundraising venture. She sells designer jeans at 75 percent retail, with a percentage going to the school.

“I tried to figure out how to be at home and make money,” said Dismore, a single mom to 9-year-old daughter Aila. “I wanted to be involved in (my daughter’s) activities, call my own shots and make my own hours.”

Naperville Central High School is giving Dismore a shot at fundraising for the school’s athletic programs. The Designer Jeans Warehouse Fundraiser is coming to the school Saturday.

“It’s fun and different,” Dismore said. “If the school isn’t successful, I’m not successful.”

When Brian McClowry, president of the NCHS Booster Club, was approached by Dismore to hold a Designer Jeans Warehouse Fundraiser, he immediately saw the benefits. A $2 admission fee and 10 percent of total sales are donated directly to the Booster Club.

“A lot of people approach us about different fundraisers,” McClowry said. “I thought this was something different.”

Dismore helps the organizations with their marketing, including postcards distributed to the district schools to promote the event. On the day of the event, Dismore brings the jeans and racks to display them. The school provides the space and about 30 volunteers who help with setup and manning the doors.

NCHS Booster Club chose Saturday because it coincides with a 12-school wrestling tournament at the school with 1,000 people expected to be in attendance. McClowry says they hope to see 500 people from the area visit the sale.

Dismore, who has hosted the fundraiser at high schools in Joliet and Downers Grove, has about 3,000 pairs of designer jeans stored in a warehouse. The jeans include brands like DKNY, Lucky, Seven, Rich & Skinny, among many others. They are retailers’ overruns, over purchases and overstocks. All the jeans are new, with 80 percent for women and the rest for men. Dismore says the jeans would normally retail for $80 to $280. She sells them for $27 to $60 — prices that are even less than local discount retailers such as T.J. Maxx and Marshalls. Dismore is able to offer such large discounts because she has no employees and no retail space overhead costs.

“I thought a sale like this would be a good benefit to students and an opportunity for people at the school to help the Boosters,” McClowry said.