Much of what you read about Black Friday is about consumerism and grabbing a bargain. This year, a group of forward-thinking brands are turning that on its head to make sure the event raises money for a worthwhile cause – the planet.
The European Outdoor Conservation Association (EOCA) highlights a number of its members side-stepping the frantic consumerism associated with Black Friday by turning it green to raise money for the association’s work, enabling conservation and a number of projects it is supporting.
Polish brand Cumulus is donating 20 percent of its online sales of the Green Friday weekend to the EOCA project ‘Clean up Action for Vulnerable Natural Habitats’ in the Ukraine, as well as offering ‘Upcycle your Experience’ online tutorials to teach consumers how to turn old bits of outdoor kit into useful items and reduce the amount going to landfill.
HDWool is organizing a bake sale at its headquarters to raise funds for EOCA. Donating 10 percent of online sales for the whole of the Green Friday week, German member deuter is raising money for the non-profit Patron and its work to clean up and reduce single-use plastic pollution in the Alps.
New Zealand-born brand icebreaker has chosen to fund an entirely new project through EOCA and will be donating €10,000 to the same organization.
La Sportiva was the first EOCA member to raise money for the association through Green Friday and has continued to support the organization in this way every year since 2017. This year is no exception, and the Italian brand is donating 40 percent of its sales over the Green Friday weekend to EOCA.
If you need to repair your favorite jacket or your sleeping bag needs a good wash, Equip Technologies Ltd, the company that owns Rab and Lowe Alpine, will donate 25 percent of the sales from its European Service Centre over the month of December, to EOCA.
Aftercare brand Nikwax Germany is giving customers a 25 percent discount on products over the Green Friday weekend and donating all profits from those sales to EOCA.
Backpack brand Osprey offers customers a 20 percent discount off selected lines beginning tomorrow and continuing until Nov. 28. It also is donating 20 percent of net profit to be split between two EOCA projects, which have been selected by its online fan base over the last few weeks.
Finally, tent brand Terra Nova, which only became an EOCA member earlier this year, is getting involved in online fundraising for EOCA by offering a 30 percent discount to its customers over the Green Friday weekend and donating five percent of its profits to EOCA.
Information on all the offers can be found on www.eocaconservation.org
