LPP’s record charity donation in 2020 worth over PLN 9 million

LPP and the foundation it established in 2017 donated over PLN 9 million in 2020 to the charges of nearly 500 NGOs, medical and non-medical institutions, as well as foundations across the country. As part of this assistance, the LPP Foundation, as every year, made in-kind donations to those in need in the form of as many as 105,000 pieces of clothing worth a total of PLN 1.4 million. Last year, the Polish manufacturer’s assistance was largely focused on combating the effects of the pandemic. In this regard, LPP supported over 300 facilities as part of the #LPPpomaga campaign, allocating nearly PLN 7 million for this purpose. In addition, the LPP Foundation continued its statutory activities aimed at preventing social exclusion, as well as implemented projects as part of employee volunteering programme.

Last year, LPP’s charity activities were predominantly focused on initiatives supporting mainly medical facilities and NGOs fighting the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite this, the Gdańsk-based company, which has been supporting people in need for 30 years, did not suspend its assistance activity, which is permanently inscribed in the charitable statutory activities of its foundation, i.e. preventing social exclusion, protecting health and the environment. Thanks to the involvement of many departments and employees of the company, as part of the large-scale #LPPpomaga campaign and voluntary activities, as well as cash and in-kind donations, the Polish clothing manufacturer supported nearly 500 entities in 2020, allocating over PLN 9 million for this purpose.

– Last year, due to the growing challenges caused by the pandemic, our aid focused primarily on supporting health care facilities. In total, as part of two rounds of #LPPpomaga, we donated PLN 6.9 million to the people in need in 300 entities located across Poland. These included isolation and specialist hospitals, but also nursing homes, foundations or medical centres – comments Patrycja Zbytniewska, President of the Management Board of the LPP Foundation. – This year was of course a huge surprise and a big unknown for everyone, but despite this fact our employees showed their character and good heart. The fight against the pandemic gave rise to further needs. The list of our charitable activities expanded and despite facing our own challenges, we did not hesitate for a moment to join in further aid efforts – she adds.

As the epidemiological situation in Poland worsened and the demand for personal protective equipment grew, LPP received further requests for support from many parties. From week to week, the number of people in need grew, and with that came more and more ideas for new charitable actions. Since the beginning of the pandemic, every day, dozens of employees have been involved in aid actions to provide support to isolation and specialist hospitals as well as social welfare homes, foundations and medical centres. – Responding to the diverse needs of each facility, we helped them both financially and through in-kind support. We donated the money needed to buy the necessary equipment, but we also organised personal protective equipment. We tried not to leave anyone without response, but the needs of our immediate neighbours and of the regions of Pomerania and Małopolska were particularly important to us first. The scale and scope of our assistance grew with each passing week. As a result, our support reached the furthest corners of Poland – sums up Patrycja Zbytniewska.

Despite its involvement in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, the LPP Foundation also continued its regular statutory activities supporting local communities as well as organisations caring for people at risk of social exclusion. This was not easy due to the epidemic restrictions in place, which limited the possibility of implementing certain activities. Nevertheless, last year, LPP and its Foundation managed to provide support in the form of cash donations to nearly 50 entities for a total of over PLN 700,000. Further nearly 140 organisations received 105,000 items of clothing worth PLN 1.4 million as in-kind donations.

Thanks to this support, in 2020 it was possible to finance holiday trips for 200 charges of 5 organisations taking care of children and youth from children’s homes in Pomerania and Kraków. These foundations were also able to carry out necessary renovations in their institutions. “Nasz Przyjazny Dom” [“Our Friendly Home”] Foundation received funds to equip a dining room with short break rooms in homes for adults with intellectual disabilities. SPOT Youth Point from Gdynia was able to renovate and equip a community centre, the walls of which will this year be decorated with graffiti designs prepared by LPP designers. Support was also given to charges of educational institutions just entering adulthood, for whom LPP, together with the Atalaya Foundation, organised confidence-building workshops and educational courses.

Last year, as usual, the Polish clothing manufacturer also remembered about the homeless. As part of its long-standing cooperation with St. Brother Albert’s Society, the activities of a heating centre for the homeless in Tczew were subsidised, and the preparation of “Christmas Eve with people in need and affected by the crisis of homelessness” organised by the Dominican Fathers’ Monastery in Gdańsk was supported.

The aid did not stop there. Thanks to the funds donated by the LPP Foundation, the MATIO Foundation was able to provide its charges with gifts for Children’s Day, while the Hospice Foundation and the Hospice Pomorze Dzieciom (Pomerania for Children) received funds for carrying out their statutory activity in this difficult time. The LPP Foundation also financed the family festival Colours in the Garden II and a virtual carolling concert held in Dolne Miasto district in Gdańsk.

Employee volunteering programme in LPP is a regular feature of the LPP Foundation’s charitable activities. Every year, “WolontWariaci” are the originators of new aid initiatives, and last year, almost 60 people from the LPP offices worked extra 475 hours for this purpose. A fixed item on their calendar is the renovation of facilities of befriended organisations or hospitals. Last year, LPP employees designed and painted the walls at the offices of the “FAScynacje” [“FAScinations”] Foundation, making them much more friendly to the charges. Once again in autumn, the “cat boxes” campaign was carried out, thanks to which dozens of animals living in the former shipyard in Gdynia had a chance to spend the winter in good conditions.

– Charity has been ingrained in our culture since the very beginning of our company. We are proud of our employees who, in such a difficult period for everyone, as always, showed great sensitivity and promptly took action. What pushes the development of our company and the LPP Foundation forward is the inner strength of our employees, who are the originators and drivers of subsequent initiatives. That is why we are proud that despite the unpredictable challenges we all faced every day – the year 2020 in LPP was marked by record-breaking aid – sums up Patrycja Zbytniewska – President of the LPP Foundation.

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LPP is a Polish family business and one of the fastest growing clothing companies in the region of Central and Eastern Europe. For over 25 years it has been successfully operating in Poland and abroad, offering its collection in traditional stores already on 25 markets, including in such prestigious capitals as London, Berlin, Tel Aviv or Moscow. LPP SA manages five fashion brands: Reserved, Cropp, House, Mohito, and Sinsay. The company has a chain of over 1800 stores with the total area of over 1.3 million sq.m. The online offer of the brands collections is available on 29 markets. On the basis of a global supply chain, the Polish clothing producer distributes over 265 million pieces of clothing to three continents. LPP also plays an important role as it employs over 24 thousand people in its offices and sales structures in Poland, Europe, Asia, and Africa. The company is listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange in the WIG20 index and belongs to the prestigious MSCI Poland index.