Carrefour Supports ‘We Are Here for You’ Social Campaign

The Life is Beautiful Foundation, one of Georgia’s most socially active charitable organizations, has launched a new social campaign. The campaign, entitled ‘We are Here for You,’ aims to raise all-important awareness and provide crucial assistance — on a monthly basis — to socially vulnerable multiple-child families.

Carrefour, the largest hypermarket and supermarket chain operated in Georgia by Majid Al Futtaim, was the first brand to respond to Life is Beautiful’s call-to-action and commit to supporting the ‘We Are Here for You’ campaign.

Joining forces to support disadvantaged and at-risk members of the local community, representatives from the Life is Beautiful Foundation and Carrefour recently visited five multiple-child families (a multiple-child family being a family with more than one child) and gifted them food products, hygiene items and home appliances. Each of the families visited had no less than six children each, and attest to the scale and severity of the challenges many families across Georgia face — especially in the wake of COVID-19.

The participation of goodwill ambassadors, such as Carrefour, will go a long way to helping vulnerable Georgian families overcome the barriers they have to contend with on a daily basis.

Life is Beautiful and Carrefour have a long and demonstrable record of contributing to important local and communal causes. Life is Beautiful was established on January 19, 2014, and has grown to distinguish itself as an influential and leading voice in Georgian civil society, organising several charitable events over the years in support of timely causes. These causes have largely been focused on issues affecting vulnerable families and families beset with difficult health conditions.

Projects organised by the foundation include: #მოდითეატრში (come to the theatre), in which 10 theaters in Tbilisi were involved. As a result of the successful implementation of the project, the beneficiaries severely impacted by serious — and, at times, life-threatening — conditions received assistance.

The foundation also launched #სიცოცხლისათვის (for life), as a result of which, vital funds were raised and used to build happy homes for children suffering from cancer.

Carrefour, which was launched in Georgia in 2012 , has also demonstrated its commitment to supporting the people and communities it serves. The brand has organized over 50 corporate citizenship events in the last two years alone, reiterating its dedication to local and international causes and initiatives, with food security and environmental sustainability among its main priorities. Sustainability, a central tenet of the brand’s ethos, is practiced through a holistic approach, encompassing environmental consciousness and the uplifting of socially vulnerable people. This focus on sustainability and helping those in need has been expressed in a number of ways, through a variety of channels, over the last few years.

A commitment to eliminating single-use plastic

In April 2018, Carrefour launched its ‘Honor the Nature’ campaign to educate its customers on the environmental harm of plastic bags, and, conversely, the advantages of using reusable bags. Since the launch, sales of Carrefour’s reusable bags have increased by 120 per cent. As part of its ongoing commitment to reducing — and eliminating — plastic consumption, Carrefour was rewarding all shoppers who choose to use a reusable bag, and in 2020, more than a million and a half customers were offered rewards. The launch of these plastic bag-free campaigns across Carrefour’s stores have since marked a 70 per cent reduction in the use of single-use plastic bags.

Uplifting people with disabilities

In April 2019, Carrefour signed a memorandum of cooperation with Tbilisi Public School No. 203, which caters to 143 children with special needs. In addition to regularly visiting the school’s students and learning about their lives, Carrefour actively supports their integration into everyday life and activities so that they can develop valuable skills and enjoy the full, independent lives they deserve.

Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, the brand’s partnerships with organisations, local authorities and governing bodies — such as the Red Cross, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Environment and Agriculture, Tbilisi City Hall, We help; Emmaus and the Autism Research Center - allowed for a further expansion of Carrefour’s scope of support. Through these partnerships, Carrefour has helped people with disabilities, single mothers, socially vulnerable families, orphans, war veterans, children with serious illnesses, and the elderly.

A catalyst for community collaboration

In parallel with implementing various corporate citizenship projects, the brand also empowers its customers to make a difference themselves.

During the pandemic, Carrefour joined the Red Cross and Tbilisi City Hall campaign to support socially vulnerable elderly people. As part of the social campaign, customers were given the opportunity to play their part by buying products at Carrefour Georgia stores, to be later distributed to those in need. Moreover, through a partnership with Mastercard, customers using the credit card within any Carrefour Georgia branch enabled a donation to be made toward helping single elderly people.

Most recently, an important memorandum signed with the international charity organisation, Emmaus, helped provide unwanted clothes to socially vulnerable families.

Carrefour continues to actively implement corporate citizenship projects in various directions, underlining its commitment to the people and communities it serves. The brand also emphasises the fact that, going forward, business will without doubt play an even greater role in supporting communities and improving the lives, welfare and wellbeing of many people across the country.

It is also noteworthy that Carrefour continues to support the Georgian economy through the opening new stores. The brand has recently celebrated the opening of five brand new outlets in the country. With unemployment being one of the most serious challenges Georgian society has to face, Carrefour maintains its position as one of the largest job creators in the local market and contributes to increasing the employment rate. In doing this, as well as raising awareness and calling attention to issues people all over the world have to contend with; and supporting dedicated partners such as Life is Beautiful, Carrefour is holding true to its promise of creating great moments for everyone, every day.