Blog Post

Contributing to SDGs at your Company

HOPE-JP • April 16, 2021

Do you think that there isn’t much your company can do to contribute to SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)?


There is no need to do something big to help solve some of the problems facing the world today. Perhaps you can start with something small. This month, we would like to introduce one of the ways in which businesses can contribute to SDGs through the Charitable Sales model that HOPE has adopted.


This method that allows a small portion of a company’s sales to be contributed as a donation is an initiative whereby a company donates a small fraction of its sales revenue to an NPO’s charitable programs.

This marketing technique that features donations through product sales is known as CRM (Cause-Related Marketing). HOPE worked with Pokka Sapporo Food & Beverage Ltd. in 2014, which marked the beginning of our use of this model, which was later applied to sales from vending machines, wine, coffee, apparel, and LINE stamps, through several partnerships with a variety of companies.

Cause Related Marketing

CRM has benefited many businesses, consumers, and NGOs in the following manner.

This marketing technique that features donations through product sales is known as CRM (Cause-Related Marketing). HOPE worked with Pokka Sapporo Food & Beverage Ltd. in 2014, which marked the beginning of our use of this model, which was later applied to sales from vending machines, wine, coffee, apparel, and LINE stamps, through several partnerships with a variety of companies.


CRM has benefited many businesses, consumers, and NGOs in the following manner.

Businesses:

Improvement in sales (depending on the implementation method), corporate image, expansion of sales channels.

NGOs (HOPE):

Increase in funding for projects, consumers become aware of the social issues that the NGOs are tackling with through their purchase of the CRM products.

Consumers:

They contribute to social causes by purchasing the CRM products.

Furthermore, there is also the shared merit of solving social problems through this model.


To demonstrate a recent example of CRM, we would like to direct your attention to our collaboration with the French pastry and canelé specialty shop, CANELÉ ET CRÈME GLACÉE, in Nagoya, which opened in 2021.

With the sale of each canelé, 3 yen is donated to a social cause, which the consumer can choose from five different charities. The shop staff has informed us that their customers are carefully choosing the social cause they wish to support. 


This is a great way to connect with and have an impact on social problems that may seem a world away. One of the charitable options at this store is the HOPE Clean Water and Sanitation & Hygiene Education project in Ethiopia. Our staff have also sampled their canelés and we can attest to their delicious taste! The canelés are also available for purchase online. 


This CRM approach can be easily implemented by businesses with existing resources and as such can help contribute to the achievement of SDGs. 


If you are interested or would like to explore this further, please feel free to contact us.


Inquiries: info@hope.or.jp

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