Staff from SuperValu, Centra and MACE stores are once again calling on customers to grab a coffee and ‘Espresso they Care’ in a fundraising campaign for the retail brands’ charity partners Action Cancer and NI Chest, Heart & Stroke.
The initiative, which returns for a third year and coincides with International Coffee Day (Sunday, 1st October). From Thursday, 28th September to Sunday, 1 October, each purchase of a Frank and Honest coffee in participating SuperValu, Centra and MACE stores, will see 50p going straight to the charities to help them continue to provide their vital lifesaving and support services.
Last year the initiative raised an incredible £20,000 and this year the brands are hoping to smash that total and raise even more funds, which will help keep Action Cancer’s mobile clinic, The Big Bus, on the road bringing its breast screening service, health checks and skin cancer detection clinic to communities across Northern Ireland, and enable NI Chest Heart & Stroke to continue to deliver care services and health promotion programmes to thousands of people living with, or at risk of developing chest, heart, and stroke conditions.
Director of Marketing at Musgrave NI, Desi Derby, said:
“We are extremely proud of our partnerships with Action Cancer and NI Chest Heart & Stroke, which make a real difference to people in communities across Northern Ireland. We’re delighted to run this initiative for the third year in a row – it’s the perfect blend for customers who can grab a coffee while raising money for a great cause at the same time.”
SuperValu and Centra have been partnering with Action Cancer since 2001, and to date have raised £3.7 million for the charity.
Thanking SuperValu and Centra staff and their customers, Gareth Kirk, CEO of Action Cancer said:
“We are delighted that SuperValu and Centra are running their ‘Espresso we Care’ coffee campaign once again this year. Thanks to the ongoing support of SuperValu and Centra customers and staff, we have been able to deliver our life-saving breast screening service and health checks on board the Big Bus to communities throughout Northern Ireland for 23 years and this year we have added a new skin cancer detection service to our range of mobile services available on board the Big Bus.
“Please support this wonderful initiative by purchasing a Frank and Honest coffee from 28th September to 1st October and in doing so you will not only enjoy lovely coffee but will also be helping Action Cancer to save the lives of local people.”
MACE’s partnership with Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke dates back to 2016 and has so far raised £285,000 for the charity.
Declan Cunnane, Chief Executive of Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke, added:
“We deliver vital care and prevention services across Northern Ireland, as well as carrying out extensive research into how to prevent chest, heart and stroke illnesses. Today, as many as 1 in 3 people here are living with these conditions and we are committed to supporting them. This year over 23,700 people and organisations benefited from our services, however, almost 90% of our income comes from public donations.
“We very much appreciate the ongoing support of Mace customers and would encourage them to pop into their local store during this campaign and pick up a coffee. Their generosity will enable us to help more local people living with chest, heart and stroke conditions and their families.”
Starting at £2.70 for a Frank and Honest coffee, 50p from the sale of each coffee will be donated to the charities over the four-day period.