IKEA is announcing the launch of its annual seasonal initiative Soft Toys for Education aimed to raise funds to provide children in developing regions with an access to quality education. As part of this international effort, the company donates one euro from each IKEA soft toy purchased during the two-month period, through January 4, to UNICEF and Save the Children.
philanthropy
The apparel, footwear & accessories brand TOMS, known for its “One for One” charitable scheme, launches a new online store that sells not only the label’s own products, but goods from other ethical companies as well. With TOMS Marketplace running on toms.com, the brand drives its philanthropic commitment further by lending its platform to more social entrepreneurs.
Gucci is extending its fashion-forward philanthropy initiative, Chime for Change, through a competition for technology developers. The fashion giant is launching a hackathon called “Chime Hack” in early December where engineers, product designers and project managers will be developing mobile applications to support girls and women globally.
Paco Rabanne has added a philantropic twist and a bit of manly sports passion to the launch of its new fragrance for men, Invictus. The fashion label is holding the Invictus Award reality show contest that features seven athletes from different countries, competing for a chance to receive funds for their charitable projects.
Following the “Likes don’t buy lives” effort, UNICEF Sweden has launched another sentimental campaign, “Escape ends here,” that aims to generate support for refugee children. The charitable organization communicated the message through an unconventional outdoor effort that involved projection mapping. Last week, residents of Stockholm could spot ghostly silhouettes of children all around the city—these eery, mystic figures were symbolizing refugee kids who have to face all the challenges of urban jungle, which becomes their home as they arrive, escaping from the native lands.
Brave, Mother and Wieden + Kennedy London have “rebranded” feminism for the November issue of the women’s magazine Elle UK. The campaign aims to draw a new picture of what feminism is, without any labels. For the project, the agencies have teamed up with feminist groups— Mother partnered with The Feminist Times, Brave worked with teenage feminist campaigner Jinan Younis, and W+K collaborated with two women behind the Vagenda website, Holly Baxter and Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett.