Buffalo entrepreneur Dan Gigante is trading in his computer for T-shirts.

Gigante, one of the co-founders of Web services provider Clevermethod, is selling his stake in the Elma firm to start a T-shirt company with a charitable twist.

Gigante's new venture, called You and Who, is an online business that sells T-shirts designed either by the company or local artists. But here's the twist: For every T-shirt that You and Who sells, it promises to donate a second shirt to someone in need through homeless shelters and other community organizations across the country.

Gigante said that sets You and Who apart from the countless other businesses that sell T-shirts in Buffalo, Rochester and the eight other cities his new venture is targeting.

"I don't know of one that gives shirts to homeless people," he said.

Since leaving Clevermethod -- the sale of his ownership stake is expected to be completed later this month -- Gigante has traveled to many of the cities You and Who is targeting to set up relationships with local homeless shelters and other groups, while also recruiting local graphic artists to design shirts targeted to local consumers.

By November, Gigante's goal is to have locally designed T-shirts available in all 10 of You and Who's markets, from San Francisco and Seattle to Austin, Texas, and New York City. For now, the site offers three You and Who-branded shirts, which sell for $25.

"I think our shirts will be on par or better quality than most places," Gigante said. "And someone who really needs one gets one, too."

Gigante said the idea for You and Who came to him a while ago, inspired by Tom's Stores, the privately held Santa Monica, Calif., company that has given away about 1 million pairs of shoes worldwide since it was started by Blake Mycoskie in 2006.

"It kept pulling at me, and I decided to pursue it," Gigante said. "It just seemed like a fulfilling way to go."

That meant cutting ties with Clevermethod, the Internet solutions firm he and two partners founded 10 years ago that has since grown to a business with several million dollars in sales and 20 employees.

"I left Clevermethod in capable hands, and they were very supportive," Gigante said.

Clevermethod co-owner Doug Kasperek said the shift should go off without a hitch. "The move is organized and amicable; we are supportive of and excited for Dan's next chapter, and we have a smooth transition planned," Kasperek said in a blog posting.

To get You and Who going, Gigante spent the last half of September flying across the country to meet with officials from homeless shelters in the company's targeted cities and trying to recruit artists to design T-shirts in exchange for $1 for every shirt that is sold.

To drum up artists in the Buffalo Niagara region, the company is holding a "Call for Artists" event from 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at Sugar City, 19 Wadsworth St. The theme for the initial batch of artist-designed shirts is "New Beginning." SoCorp Inc., a Buffalo screen printing business, will produce the T-shirts.

"I anticipate getting the most artists out of Buffalo," Gigante said.

While You and Who has a charitable bent, Gigante said the company is a for-profit business.

"I'm not going to retire off of You and Who," he said. "But I want to be profitable so I can continue and add new features."

drobinson@buffnews.comnull