Working with charities isn’t just part of being a good corporate citizen – done the right way it can motivate staff and generate free PR.

Contrary to popular belief, the cut-throat, competitive world of retail has a soft side. Whether it’s older people, children, victims of domestic violence, cancer patients, or even rabbits, millions across the globe have benefited from retailers’ extensive donations and fundraising efforts.

Aside from the obvious benefits such endeavours bring to recipients, there are numerous advantages for the brand, too. One, clearly, is positive PR. There is no doubt that customers like the idea of shopping at retailers that appear to care and whose day-to-day interests extend beyond the world of business operations. As Marks & Spencer community partnerships manager Alexis Steadman says: “We have a long history of giving to charity. Our customers expect it. We’re a trusted brand and people know we’re helping communities. If we didn’t do it, there would be a lot of questions asked.”

M&S has received reams of coverage for the fact it is donating all the profits from charging for plastic bags to environmental charity Groundwork. Although in no way a deliberate ploy – far from it – the upbeat news stories that such charitable acts generate can also, by default, act as a useful antidote to any less positive coverage.

Involving the public in these ventures also promotes the values of a business. At Debenhams, the retailer’s Mantaray clothing brand has a partnership with the Marine Conservation Society. Aside from cash donations, Debenhams’ tie-up also helps the charity with beach cleans-ups and promotes volunteering days to customers in its stores.

Elsewhere, Monsoon Accessorize runs its own charity, the Monsoon Accessorize Trust, which works with small local charities from countries where it sources product, such as India. It holds sample Sales throughout the year that are open to the public, with all proceeds going to the trust. It also sells charity products such as t-shirts, flip-flops and jewellery, for which a percentage of profits are donated to the charity.

Charity work can also have a useful effect on staff morale – particularly beneficial at times when retail businesses are finding the going tough. Altruism can be the perfect tool to lift the mood and actively encouraging staff to get involved can be an effective team-building exercise. Superdrug works with the Teenage Cancer Trust and, as trading director Jeff Wemyss says, it’s about “getting involved and having fun, rather than just signing a cheque and walking away”.

With the help of the Prince’s Trust, DisabledGo, Business Action on Homelessness and One Parent Families, M&S also runs its company-led work experience programme Marks & Start, which helps those who face particular challenges finding a job. During work placements, they are given a “buddy” at the retailer to help show them the ropes and offer support. Steadman says: “Being a buddy to someone who’s homeless or disabled can be challenging and the experience motivates people, boosts pride in the company and develops people’s skills.”

LINKS WITH THE COMMUNITY

DSGi, meanwhile, is involved with four charities through its foundation called Switched on Communities. By partnering with four different national charities – AbilityNet, The Foyer Federation, e-Learning Foundation and Eco-Schools – it helps people gain access to technology.

DSGi director of investor relations David Lloyd-Seed says employees now understand more about the communities that its stores are in. “We’re not just selling products into the community, we’re a part of it and we’re encouraging our employees to think the same way,” he says. “We’ve learnt a lot about the people who those charities help and we’ve learnt about the types of products that these people need.”

But working with a charity isn’t simply a case of knocking on their door, signing a contract, sticking their name on your web site and sending them an annual donation. It requires time and effort to be done properly, particularly when retail businesses have established their own charity through which to co-ordinate their fundraising.

Monsoon founder Peter Simon set up the Monsoon Accessorize Trust in 1994. Corporate responsibility manager Gillian Lipton says: “By working directly with local charities, we are able to ensure every penny donated goes directly to a project at grass-roots level. We are not tied to one or two large charities, so we have the flexibility of being able to choose a variety of different types of projects.”

Retailers need to ensure they choose a charity that fits with their brand identity. The more suited the charity is, the more customers and your workforce will be convinced of your genuine interest in that cause. Bonmarché supports Macmillan Cancer Support, for instance, and the Pets at Home Charitable Foundation supports, among others, Dogs for the Disabled and the Blue Cross.

At Arcadia, Burton has been working with Cancer Research UK on the Bobby Moore Fund for several years. “The majority of our customers are football fans and are aware of the huge contribution Bobby Moore made to the game,” says a spokeswoman. “By working with the charity, we ensure our customers’ awareness of the issue of bowel cancer and help raise money for a charity that resonates with our customers.”

It is a good idea to involve your workforce in choosing the charity. Peacocks chose to support Cancer Research UK after feedback forms sent to all colleagues revealed a strong preference for a cancer charity.

Charity partnerships also require proactive marketing to maximise the PR benefits. Tie-ups may be numerous, but you can bet that millions of customers have little or no idea about them. These ventures are good news, so promote them. Debenhams menswear buying director Paul Baldwin says: “I would hope it creates some affinity and loyalty to the brand in the long term.”

In fact, the success of a partnership is often dependent on such marketing. Dorothy Perkins has worked extensively with The Woodland Trust. Over the past 18 months, it has raised£600,000 and planted 124,000 new trees –£5 from every sale of branded collections pays for the charity to plant a tree. Apart from highlighting the range through in-store graphics, it developed a micro site on its web site where people could plant virtual trees. Dorothy Perkins plants one real tree for every 100 virtual trees. In addition to helping the charity, such marketing helps drive traffic to its web site.

Superdrug has used images of Leona Lewis, the face of its campaign for the Teenage Cancer Trust, in its stores and customer magazine, and on its web site. It has also implemented a full PR programme. Wemyss says: “We’ve also had the Shun Burn team, which has been out to festivals and events offering sun safety advice and samples of sun care – and when it’s been sunny, we’ve hit the beaches and parks to get the message across.”

CUSTOMER HELP

Steadman says M&S has to promote its work with Oxfam, for instance, to meet its environmental targets. The retailer has been encouraging customers to donate unwanted M&S clothes to Oxfam in return for a£5 voucher and, since its launch six months ago, it has raised£1 million. “Our customers need to know about it to raise money. You have to look at it pragmatically – without them, we couldn’t have achieved this,” she says.

A word of warning, though: don’t overdo it. Retailers must be wary about inciting “fundraising fatigue” among colleagues, says Peacocks customer services manager Marc Holley, who manages the retailer’s charity partnership. Several years ago, an admirable target to raise£1 million for a care home charity by a certain deadline resulted in all employees having to rush around raising the final£300,000 in a short time frame. “It got to the point when we were asking colleagues and customers to fundraise every other month,” he recalls.

After raising its£1 million, Peacocks decided to have a nine-month fundraising break before signing up to its new charity, Cancer Research UK. It then decided to look at a fundraising system that would ease the pressure on store colleagues. Fundraising now primarily takes place at certain times of the year, such as during Breast Cancer Awareness month.

Holley says: “Things are tough in stores and we don’t want to burden them with extra responsibilities. We do most fundraising from head office and we leave it up to store staff to choose their own level of involvement.” This strategy has proved particularly successful – to date it has raised£1.2 million over three years. By not putting pressure on staff, Peacocks has found that, if anything, they have been even more proactive.

There are costs involved with charity partnerships, in terms of cash contributions or marketing. But provided you factor these costs in to your business plan, they can be easily absorbed. Cash is tight in retail at the moment, but can you really put a price on something that helps those in need, generates sales and boosts brand loyalty in one fell swoop?

Some other retail charitable ventures:

  • PC World Childnet

  • Arcadia Group The Children’s Charity. At brand level: Dorothy Perkins Breast Cancer Care and The Woodland Trust; Evans Breakthrough Breast Cancer and children’s mobility charity Whizz-Kidz; Miss Selfridge The Lavender Trust at Breast Cancer Care; Topman The Everyman Campaign; Topshop Women’s Aid and Refuge; Wallis Cancer Research UK

  • Tesco Marie Curie Cancer Care

  • Ted Baker Shelter

  • Net-a-Porter Fashion Targets Breast Cancer Worldwide

  • H&M Water Aid

  • Ikea Save the Children

  • Pets at Home Hearing Dogs, Dogs for the Disabled, The Blue Cross, Dog’s Trust, Cats Protection, the Rabbit Welfare Association

  • Argos In Kind Direct, which receives donated goods from retailers and manufacturers for voluntary organisations