Conn's, Inc. (NASDAQ: CONN), a specialty retailer of furniture, mattresses, home appliances and consumer electronics, today unveiled a new philanthropic program called Conn's Cares, which will help improve the communities it serves by empowering children. The first activation of the program will be a literacy initiative designed to provide books to the children who need them most.

Conn’s legacy of community service reaches back to its founding in 1890. Education has always been a particular focus of the Company, with C.W. Conn, Jr. regularly joining employees in reading to children in the schools of Beaumont, Texas.

Conn’s Cares, however, is the Company’s first program that will galvanize every employee around a single cause across all Conn’s locations.

"Our vision is that Conn’s Cares will become an enduring investment in the children of the communities we serve,” said Theodore M. Wright, Conn’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “We are committed to the idea that every child should have an opportunity to succeed.”

Empowering Kids through Literacy

The focus of Conn's Cares in 2015 is a partnership with First Book, a nonprofit social enterprise that puts books in the hands of children who need them most. Over the course of 2015, Conn’s plans to donate more than $300,000 worth of new books to children in need.

The partnership will kick off February 25-26th with a "Books on Wheels" event in Houston, where employees will distribute 20,000 new books to local educators.

Conn's will further activate the program at each of its stores in 2015 through local grants that will supply new books to organizations in every community that Conn’s serves. In addition, reading parties will be held in select Conn's markets where store associates will read to kids in classrooms to celebrate a donation of 1,000 books to each selected school or community program.

"Literacy is the springboard for children to dream and succeed,” said Wright. “We know that children from many of our communities lack access to books and that, along with inspiration from Conn’s history, led to the First Book partnership. We feel fortunate to partner with such a great organization and look forward to achieving great things together.”

“First Book is proud to support Conn’s commitment to empowering young readers,” said Kyle Zimmer, president and CEO of First Book. “Books are critical to a child’s success in school and in life. By putting new books into the hands of kids who need them, Conn’s is investing in the future of communities it serves.”

About Conn's

Conn’s is a specialty retailer currently operating more than 90 retail locations in Arizona, Colorado, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas. The Company’s primary product categories include:

  • Furniture and mattress, including furniture and related accessories for the living room, dining room and bedroom, as well as both traditional and specialty mattresses;
  • Home appliance, including refrigerators, freezers, washers, dryers, dishwashers and ranges;
  • Consumer electronics, including LCD, LED, 3-D, Ultra HD and plasma televisions, Blu-ray players, home theater and video game products, digital cameras and portable audio equipment; and
  • Home office, including computers, tablets, printers and accessories.

Additionally, Conn’s offers a variety of products on a seasonal basis. Unlike many of its competitors, Conn’s provides flexible in-house credit options for its customers in addition to third-party financing programs and third party rent-to-own payment plans.

About First Book

First Book is a nonprofit social enterprise that has distributed more than 150 million books and educational resources to programs and schools serving children from low-income families through the United States and Canada. By making new, high-quality books available on an ongoing basis, First Book is transforming the lives of children in need and elevating the quality of education. For more information, visit firstbook.org or follow the latest news on Facebook and Twitter.

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