Sonae : Brands and employees united to support victims of the fires

Corporate responsibility policy plans donations and teams on the field

Donation of goods for people and animals, financial support for rebuilding and volunteering are a few of the initiatives promoted by Sonae companies.

Sonae brands have come together to fight the impact of the fire in Pedrógão Grande on the several local communities affected. As part of its corporate responsibility policy, Sonae is on the field cooperating with institutions like the Portuguese Red Cross, Food Banks Against Hunger and Entrajuda, providing support with donations and rallying employees for volunteering actions.

Catarina Oliveira Fernandes, director of Communication, Brand and Corporate Responsibility at Sonae, says: 'Sonae dedicates a great deal of attention to local communities, regularly promoting corporate responsibility actions with the purpose of supporting those who need the most. Considering this recent catastrophe, Sonae brands and companies have come together, fulfilling their social support mission while cooperating on the field and with partner institutions in order to provide help to the populations and emergency teams'.

In order to meet the most immediate needs, Sonae brands stepped forward with the donation of goods and food. Missão Continentestarted helping immediately, through Continente stores, providing necessary basic foodstuffs for firefighters and locals. Well'sdonated first-aid material to several Fire Brigades, namely saline, gauze swabs and burn creams. Worten is cooperating with the Portuguese Red Cross to equip temporary housing (with stoves, air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment, etc.), and also on how to apply the remaining amount raised within the 2016 Código DáVinte campaign. On their end, Berg Outdoor, Deeply, Zippy, MOand Sport Zoneoffered over 15 thousand new clothes for babies, children, men and women.

Through its volunteering program Sonae Activshare, more than one hundred employees have already been mobilized to help in different support initiatives in Pedrógão Grande. Similarly to what happened last Monday with a group of 50 employees, tomorrow, 4th July, 80 volunteers from different Sonae companies, from Lisbon and Oporto, will spend the entire day at the Social Store of Pedrógão Grande to help triage and storage the goods donated by the Portuguese population, with the purpose of organising kits towards affected families.

Rebuilding homes and help make for a better future

In addition to the emergency support, Sonae brands and companies are also committed to help rebuild the affected areas. Hence, Sonae RPwill channel an amount to help rebuild homes while Sonae FS will associate with a monetary donation through the gift card Dá Presentes. Maxmat will deliver building material to help recover homes and Sonae MC, through its home goods brand Kasa, is collecting products necessary to reequip homes and prepare school kits to offer children when they go back to school, with the support of Makenotes and note!stores.

'As a long living company, Sonae will continue to support the affected communities, helping in the crucial rebuilding effort that will extend for several months. Our focus is to cooperate with the competent authorities so we can channel the material and human resources efficiently and in accordance with real local needs', concluded Catarina Oliveira Fernandes.

Request of the Portuguese Red Cross

In view of the most urgent needs and current ability to store/triage already donated items, the institution is only accepting the donation of certain new items in kind, namely:

• Hygiene items (baby diapers and adult pads, tooth brush/paste, menstrual pads, shaving razors/foam, shower gel, shampoo, combs, hairbrushes)
• Kitchen items (pans, frying pans, kettles, plates, cutlery, platters, glasses, plastic food containers, utensils)
• Blankets
• Sleeping bags.

About Sonae Corporate Responsibility

Through Sonae Activshare, its social responsibility and volunteering programme, Sonae organised several projects and initiatives throughout 2016, in the areas of social solidarity, health and sports, environmental awareness, culture, education and science and innovation, in a more than €10 M investment that benefited about 1,400 institutions.