West 49 will take that used coat

West 49 News Release

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West 49’s 8th annual national Coats for Kids campaign is underway with the hopes of another unbelievably successful year. For seven years West 49 customers have consistently delivered strong community support by donating coats for kids who don’t have adequate winter clothing. To date more than 60,000 kids have received winter coats as a result of this initiative.

“Our customers are aware of the important role they play in helping us meet our target for coats. In partnering with local charitable organizations we have an excellent opportunity to be proactive in helping less fortunate families,” said Cindy Mielke, Director of Marketing for West 49. “We surpassed our goal last year by almost 5,000 coats, we are sure we can collect and distribute even more coats to help kids stay warm this winter and are challenging our customers with a goal of 15,000 coats nationally for 2010.”

West 49 Coats for Kids campaign started on October 1st and runs through to November 28th. Coat collection barrels will be placed in each and every store. Everyone who brings in a clean, insulated gently used winter coat to any West 49 (or other participating stores) across Canada will receive $25 off any winter jacket. West 49 banners Billabong, D-TOX & Amnesia (Quebec) are also participating in this year’s campaign so there are lots of barrels to fill throughout the country. Donated jackets will then be given to various youth shelters and charities across the country. In past campaigns, coats have been provided to organizations such as: Big Brothers and Big Sisters, Children’s Aid Society, Salvation Army, The United Way and local youth shelters across the country.

Since 2002 West 49 has been collecting coats for kids who need to keep warm in the winter. Year one secured a few thousand coats and since then West 49 has surpassed the target collection goals every year. It is due to vendor partnerships with great brands like Billabong, Ripzone, Powder Room and Burton who have been long-time supporters of this campaign.

One in nine Canadian children, more than a million, lives below the poverty line according to the 2008 Report Card on Child and Family Poverty in Canada. The rate of child poverty has remained at 12 per cent for two decades now, according to Statistics Canada.*

Coats for Kids is part of West 49’s ongoing community support initiatives, including the Annual Gift Box Drive, in support of Make-A-Wish® Canada which kicks off this holiday season.

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