Donation through shopping

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Donation through Shopping

Local News Reporter Kim Ji Won

‘I marymond you’; a phrase that can be easily observed on campuses. It is written on a variety of products, ranging from phone cases to socks. Marymond is a social enterprise that donates 50% of its sales to organizations related ‘Comfort Women(위안부)’. ((The term ‘Comfort Women’ is used to describe Korean women who were forced to sex slavery during the Japanese occupation period.))

After initiate of Suzy‘s Marymond phone case at Incheon international airport was capture in 2015, Attention over the new brand began to spread throughout Korean. The phone case was immediately sold out and starting from 14,548 in 2015. Marymond’s sales in 2016 and 2017 reached 84,026 and 266,099 respectively. Marymond’s popularity increased exponentially following its sudden increase in sales. As a result, the total amount donated by Marymond hit about 500 million won.

Marymond is one method out of many that promote donation through shopping. Ticket Monster, a Korean social commerce corporation, donated over 50 million won in a span of 6 months through its ‘donation through shopping’ strategy which involves partnerships with other companies or NGOs. HP and AMD Korea’s ‘Beautiful Notebook’ deal is an example that shows a strategic partnership with Ticket Monster to promote customer donation. The deal involves donating one computer, priced at around 40만원, to ‘Save the Children’ for every 100 computers sold. A total of 46 computers were donated to ‘Save the Children’ by the second season of the deal and considering the progress of the ongoing third season, an additional 10 computers are likely to be donated to the same organization. In another example, through its ‘Share The Love Be My Santa” campaign with Ticket Monster, Krispy Kreme Donuts donated 100\ for every donut sold and in total, delivered 1,640만원 to “Love Field Together’ foundation to aid teenage households and senior citizens who live alone. By actively engaging in such campaigns, Ticket Monster has become a model corporation pioneering in the field of social contribution.

Besides Marymond and Teemon, companies like 본죽, 뚜레쥬르 and 셀렉토 커피 have started ‘donation menus’ which donate certain amounts of money when sold. There are other methods such as buying a bracelet or calendar and have a portion of the money donated to people in need of medical care or buying a hat, pouch or ring to fund domestic or foreign children suffering from poverty.

There are a few reasons to the increase of these ‘donation through shopping’ projects. First, the number of consumers who wish to hold others while engaging in economic activities is increasing. According to a survey conducted by a market research company 엠브레인 트렌드모니터, more than 90% answered that they feel satisfied if their consumptions help others while 85% said that the idea of providing aid to another person is happiness itself. Also, 70% answered that they have the intention to pay a higher price for products from an ethical corporation. On top of that, the fact that the product does not only provide donations for others but also comes with utility is another contributing factor to customer satisfaction.

Through these factors, consumers who were never interested in donation can buy products which meet their own and demands and the needs for others simultaneously. This way, attention towards ‘donation through shopping’ will rise and promote courage for more valuable donations. Making small donations through everyday consumptions is one way of becoming a wise consumer.