Retailers and their customers fundraised £370m for charities and good causes in the last financial year, according to a report by the British Retail Consortium (BRC).
Some 34 retailers including Tesco, Lidl and ASDA contributed to the report, which says that they collectively raised £200m for good causes through fundraising, with an additional £150m donated directly by the businesses themselves.
People across the retail industry also donated £20m through payroll donation schemes and volunteered 1.7 million hours of time supporting retail community programmes.
The report reads: “The last 18 months have been particularly challenging for retail, with the industry facing record cost inflation which has squeezed margins.”
Nonetheless, a total of 69 million meals and £76m worth of products were donated to charities and organisations supporting those in need.
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of BRC, said: “It is fantastic to see the scale of support that retailers, colleagues and customers have given to good causes in the last year, despite the tough economic landscape.
“Whether fundraising in stores and online, making salary donations, or volunteering time for local projects, retailers are helping their communities in a wealth of ways.”
Dickinson said that micro-donation technology, whereby customers are asked to donate a small amount when paying by card or phone in-store, was “making it even easier for customers to support good causes”.
Alison Hutchinson, CEO of micro-donations charity Pennies, said: “We have seen digital micro-donations grow by over 45% year on year despite the challenging economic climate showing the generosity of retailers and their customers.”
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