Customer donations help select North Dakota for site of first company-sponsored Habitat home.
Kum & Go and its customers will donate more than $450,000 to Habitat for Humanity International, thanks to the success of the convenience retailer’s “Let’s Build a Home Together” project.
Kum & Go’s $100,000 corporate donation, an additional donation estimated at $100,000 to sponsor the home, and $262,000 in customer donations will combine to reach the $450,000-plus campaign total.
In March, Kum & Go became a national partner of Habitat for Humanity and invited customers to add a $1 donation to their in-store purchases to support Habitat’s mission of building homes, communities and hope. At that time, Kum & Go committed to sponsoring a Habitat for Humanity home in one of the communities where its 420 stores operate in 11 states. The affordable and eco-friendly home will be built in the region collecting the most money in donations as a percentage of customer traffic through its stores—with North Dakota earning this honor.
“We are appreciative of our customers’ overwhelming response to this initiative to support Habitat for Humanity and bring an affordable home to one of the communities we serve,” said Kum & Go president and CEO Kyle Krause. “Habitat’s mission strongly resonated with our associates and customers, which drove the success of the program. We are a proud partner of Habitat for Humanity, and we look forward to sponsoring a home and supporting Habitat’s important efforts in our communities.”
Associates eager to win the Habitat home for their regions enthusiastically promoted the in-store fundraiser. Customers quickly responded by donating $100,000—the goal for the entire month—in just nine days. As of March 31, customer contributions totaled more than $262,000, with all of the donations supporting Habitat for Humanity’s mission.
Stores in North Dakota collected the most donations per transaction to win the competition and secure a Habitat home for a low-income family in a state with an acute housing shortage due to the oil boom. Kum & Go associates throughout the region will have the opportunity to volunteer to help construct the home in Minot, N.D., in cooperation with the local Northern Lights Chapter of Habitat for Humanity.
“We couldn’t be happier with the overall success of this first initiative with Kum & Go,” said Lysa Ratliff, senior director of Corporate Programs for Habitat for Humanity International. “Kum & Go has a long history of generous nonprofit support, and we look forward to working with them to continue drawing attention to the need for affordable and sustainable housing.”
Kum & Go, which is currently Habitat’s only national convenience retail partner, is the nation’s fifth largest privately held, company-operated convenience store chain. The convenience retailer donates 10% of profits each year to charitable causes in the communities it serves. Habitat for Humanity has more than 1,500 affiliates at work in the U.S., building houses in partnership with people in need of decent, affordable housing. Habitat homes are purchased by low-income families through no-profit mortgages, thanks to the donated labor of Habitat volunteers and the support of partner organizations, individuals and foundations. Families buying Habitat homes invest sweat equity hours toward building their homes and the homes of others.