Local Cloth Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
455399614
IRS 990 coverage
2022–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2020
Location
Asheville, NC, USA
Phone
8287745134
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Arts, Cultural Organizations - Multipurpose

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$413,052
Expenses
$266,023
Assets
$241,832
Liabilities
$314

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • Courtney LaCaria (Managing Director): $15,660 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Sustained by a passion for fiber, Local Cloth is a volunteer-led non-profit network of fiber artists, farmers, small- scale fiber processors, educators, and fiber enthusiasts, dedicated to growing and supporting the fiber economy in Western North Carolina and increasing awareness of and access to regional production and artisan practices.

What it reported doing in 2024

Retail + Markets: Local Cloth operates a retail shop, online store, and regional market program that provides income-generating opportunities for fiber artists and farmers across the Blue Ridge Mountains Fibershed. Through a combination of brick-and-mortar retail, online sales, and participation in regional markets, Local Cloth connects local producers with customers, increasing visibility and access to locally made fiber goods. During the fiscal year, Local Cloth sold 6,239 items across 9 markets, in addition to ongoing retail shop and online sales. Following Hurricane Helene in September 2024, Local Cloth expanded its market presence and launched an online retail shop to sustain vendor opportunities while the physical studio underwent restoration. Retail operations are supported by staff and volunteers, including vendor participation models that allow artists to contribute time in exchange for increased commission rates. This program plays a critical role in Local Cloths mission by creating economic opportunity, supporting small-scale producers, and increasing public access to locally sourced fiber products.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 72% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 46% for direct work, and 54% for grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of total spending goes to programs. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 64
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 74
  • Sustainability: 62
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 53.9%; rating input score 54
  • Program expense ratio: 79.7%; rating input score 80
  • Fundraising efficiency: $24.77 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 35.6%; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.91; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 5.9%; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.4% per year; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 34.1% per year; rating input score 100; 94th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 60.5% per year; rating input score 100; 97th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 53.9% of revenue deployed · 79.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 3 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $212K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $16K · 13 people listed
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 3 filing years from 2022 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 54/100.
  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 38/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 32/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 56/100.