Date published: 01.09.08 - not release date

Retail Therapy and Retail-Charity: a perfect combination this Christmas! Don't shop direct: shop with a conscience and give to UK charities without extra cost

LONDON Monday 27th November, 2006 ~ From today shoppers can give to UK charities while they spend with 100's of brands – yet the prices they pay will not change. www.retail-charity.com is an online shopping mall which turns the traditional concept on its head by donating 50% of its revenues to UK charities.

When shoppers visit www.retail-charity.com they'll find their favourite brands, including Hamleys, Marks & Spencer, Amazon, Boots, iTunes, Halfords, John Lewis, Tesco and eBay. Before shopping, they'll be asked to register their name and the category of charity they wish to support – including children, animal, disability, homeless or a range of others.
It is estimated that online spending in the UK in 2007 will reach £10 billion, and that may be a conservative estimate. By shopping via www.retail-charity.com consumers can make sure a percentage goes to excellent causes.

It costs nothing extra to start shopping via www.retail-charity.com, but 100's of worthwhile charities will benefit, including smaller charities as well as big names such as Mencap, the National Autistic Society, the RNLI and the RSPCA. All charities have been verified with the UK Charities Commission.

When shoppers click onto any store it opens in a new window, so when they’ve finished with one retailer, they can close it and return to the main site to continue shopping and giving. At the bottom of each retailer screen a red bar will tell the shopper how much their shopping is worth to their chosen charities.

Shopping portal, search engine and virtual mall organisers traditionally make money from their retail partners based on how many visitors they direct to the retailer’s site. With www.retail-charity.com the retail partners have still agreed to pay a fee per visitor, or a certain percentage of sales – but in this case, a full half of the revenue (not just the profit) will go directly to the charity category that the shopper has chosen.

www.retail-charity.com and its brand partners have made a serious commitment to UK charities. Together they make a request to consumers not to shop direct – but to shop via www.retail-charity.com and really make a difference this Christmas.


Media Contacts:-

Claire Cranton - Potion PR & Marketing
Email: claire@potionpr.com
Tel: 01753 498 537

Sue Rizzello – Potion PR & Marketing
Email: sue@potionpr.com
Tel: 01753 498 538