NBSparkStart - New Balance and Boys & Girls Clubs of America
NBSparkStart is New Balance’s new global cause program to help promote healthy living for kids around the world. To do this, NBSparkStart’s mission is to improve the health, well- being and self-esteem of children through movement. While NBSparkStart is a new initiative, New Balance Inc. and the New Balance Foundation have been committed to giving back to communities for over 30 years.
To help inspire a lifetime of movement, New Balance partnered with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Boys & Girls Clubs annually serve nearly 4 million young people, through membership and community outreach, in over 4,100 Club facilities throughout the country and BGCA-affiliated Youth Centers on U.S. military installations worldwide.
From July 15, 2014 – August 31, 2014, when consumers purchased a pair of New Balance kid’s shoes from participating New Balance stores or online, New Balance donated 30% of the retail sales price to Boys & Girls Clubs of America – in the form of new shoes.
Employees from NB offices and retail stores in many of the 19 markets worked with Clubs to participate in the distribution of the in-kind shoes and to participate in a volunteer event at the Club.
In 2013, New Balance sold roughly 54,000 pairs of kid’s shoes during the back to school time period. In 2014, NB sold roughly 92,000 pairs of kid’s shoes, a 70% increase in pairs sold year over year. In 2013, NB sold roughly $2.6M in kids shoes during the same time period. In 2014, NB sold roughly $3.4M in kids shoes, a 31% increase year over year. The total donation was valued at $1M, about 11,000 pairs of shoes.
