Birthday bash is a fundraising smash

Olivia Nash celebrates SPAR’s fundraising smash for Marie Curie with Conor O’Kane from the charity, after shoppers and retailers across Northern Ireland smashed through their target, raising £97,000 during a morning of Blooming Great Birth-tea Parties in June. SPAR NI stores have now raised over £452,000 for Marie Curie since the partnership began.

Over £50,000 alone was raised during the outstanding success of the Blooming Great Birth-tea Parties in June, where retailers across NI donned silly wigs, felt the burn through spin-a-thons, held giveaways and raffles, all while exchanging a cuppa and a bun for donations to Marie Curie the brand’s charity partner for the past four years.

£26,000 has also been raised through the sale of branded Marie Curie face coverings throughout stores in NI. A total of £452,000 has now been raised by SPAR NI since the beginning of the partnership, bringing the team ever closer towards the half a million-pound milestone.

Bronagh Luke, Head of Corporate Marketing at Henderson Group which owns the SPAR brand in Northern Ireland said they are delighted to have smashed through their target of £60,000 – one they hoped to achieve by the end of the year.

“What a fantastic comeback for our in-store fundraising for Marie Curie, we are just so grateful to our retailers and store teams for buying into the concept and all of our shoppers who supported their local stores and this fantastic charity on the day.

“To reach this figure halfway through our birthday year just goes to show what we can achieve for those who most need it in our local communities, and we are determined to keep the fundraising going for the rest of this special year and beyond.”