The term cause-related marketing was reportedly first coined by American Express when it launched a marketing program to assist with the renovation costs of the Statue of Liberty. At the time 40 years ago, Amex donated a penny for each use of its credit card and a dollar for each newly issued card toward the renovation program.
The flooring industry has done its share of cause-related marketing over the years, collaborating with such worthy causes as Susan G. Komen, Tunnel for Towers and St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital to name a few.
Here’s a sampling of some recent cause-related marketing efforts:
CCA Global Retail Group
The CCA Global Retail Group has had a longtime charitable partnership with the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, which supports America’s first responders and military heroes. CCA’s Carpet One Floor & Home has been working with their Smart Home Program since 2013 to help build technology-enabled homes that give veterans a space to regain their independence once they return home. Other CCA divisions work with the Gold Star Family Home Program to honor the legacy of those who made the ultimate sacrifice by providing mortgage-free homes to surviving spouses with young children. Members across divisions participate in the Tunnel to Towers 5K Run & Walk in New York City every September. More than $180,000 was raised this year.
Shaw
Shaw first partnered with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in 2012 as a national sponsor of the Dream Home Giveaway. Shaw donates all flooring for 45+ Dream Home giveaways yearly. The homes are raffled away, with ticket sales going to St. Jude. Shaw’s partnership has grown with retailer support of its co-branded cushion collection, Shaw’s “Clean for A Cause” products and the St. Jude Memphis Marathon—with $21+ million generated for the kids of St. Jude.
Since 2019, Shaw has teamed up with Homes For Our Troops (HFOT), a nonprofit organization that builds and donates specially adapted custom homes nationwide for severely injured, post-9/11 veterans. More than 60 of HFOT’s specially adapted custom homes now have Shaw flooring.
Galleher
Building Homes for Heroes holds profound importance to Galleher, a sentiment underscored by CEO Ted Kozikowski’s background as a Coast Guard veteran. Recognizing the sacrifices made by service members, Galleher supports this organization by donating flooring for homes provided to wounded veterans. By contributing to the construction of accessible and comfortable homes, Galleher helps ensure these heroes can rebuild their lives with dignity and the comforts of a supportive environment.
Mannington
Mannington Mills engages on a local level in the communities where it has operations, such as the Boys & Girls Clubs and Mercy Medical Angels, as well as nationally through relationships with organizations like the Gary Sinise R.I.S.E. Foundation.
Mannington is engaged with United Way at several of its locations. It recently sponsored—and had a team of runners—for the United Way of Gordon County’s 30th annual Unity Run. Mannington also has a longstanding relationship with Habitat for Humanity of Salem County (N.J.) and has donated flooring for each of the homes it has built in its 40-year existence.
Mohawk
Since 2001, Mohawk has partnered with Susan G. Komen, an organization dedicated to breast cancer advocacy and finding a cure. Over the lifetime of the partnership, Mohawk has donated $6.8 million to the cause. Mohawk also donates SmartCushion for its 3-Day series, where walkers use the cushion to rest during their 20-mile walk. Mohawk’s newest partnership is with Plastic Bank, a social enterprise that empowers communities to use plastic waste as currency. This initiative coincides with Mohawk’s PureTech, which is PVC-free and made of renewable and recycled materials. A percentage of every purchase of PureTech goes to keeping plastics out of the ocean, in collaboration with Plastic Bank.
NWFA
Since 2015, NWFA and its members have supported Gary Sinise’s R.I.S.E. Foundation, donating product, logistics and installation services for 72 R.I.S.E. homes, with another 13 in various stages of planning and construction. Locally, NWFA supports The Little Bit Foundation in St. Louis, which breaks down barriers to learning for students affected by poverty. NWFA sends staffers to volunteer at Little Bit every other week.
FEI Group
After founder Dave Gheesling’s passing, the David B. Gheesling Trust was formed. The DBG Trust focuses on serving underprivileged kids who have an interest in planetary science and space exploration (a Gheesling passion). As a result of that passion, FEI began to hold fundraisers for the Meteoritical Society (MetSoc), which has an annual conference that invites students interested in working in the field to attend where they can connect with the entire industry. Kalpana Singh Verma, a research scholar from India, was the first recipient of the DGB travel grant in 2022.
