CEO Chat: Jenai Sullivan Wall Talks Give Aloha
(Partner Content) As its fundraising campaign turns 25 this year, the Foodland chairman and CEO looks back on a legacy that all started with Foodland’s founder.
Since 1999, September has been dedicated to Give Aloha, Foodland’s fundraising campaign that encourages shoppers to give in whatever way they can—even if it’s simply rounding their bill to the next dollar and donating the change. It’s also an opportunity for Foodland to amplify the efforts by matching those gifts. With more than $39.5 million raised for Hawai‘i’s charities to date, Give Aloha is proof that a little generosity from everyone goes a long, long way.
Photo: Courtesy of Foodland
As it turns a milestone birthday this year, chairman and CEO Jenai Sullivan Wall thinks back to how Foodland’s community matching gift program started and how the past 25 years of giving have sparked awe, gratitude and joy.
How did Give Aloha start?
JSW: We started Give Aloha after my father passed away. My father always told us that we had a responsibility as a company to support the community that supported us, and he wanted to make sure that we gave back to our customers.
The thing about my dad is that the gave a lot of his time and money to organizations, but he also loved to ask other people to give. He felt that he was giving them the opportunity to help others. Give Aloha brings a lot of those ideas together. It encourages our customers to support things that they care about, in whatever way they are able to.
That’s a really important point! There’s no pressure to donate a certain amount. Whatever you give is enough.
JSW: The nice thing is that it’s anonymous. Typically, you might not give a dollar because, A, it’s hard to do otherwise, and B, you might be embarrassed that you only have a dollar or 50 cents to give. But this way, everyone can participate—even with their change—if they want to.
What are the ways that people can participate?
JSW: They can donate at the register, either rounding up and donating the change, or choose to donate up to $249. They can donate their Maika‘i points.
Photo: Courtesy of Foodland
Also, this year we’ve partnered with Suzanne Jennerich to create beautiful Give Aloha designs, which we’ve put on merchandise. A hundred percent of proceeds from sales of that merchandise will go towards matching gifts.
What is something you’ve learned from these past 25 years?
JSW: At first, we didn’t know what to expect. What we learned is that people in Hawai‘i are very generous. They give their spare change. We ask if they want to round up their grocery purchase and they say yes. They ask who they can donate to.
No matter what their socioeconomic background is, people still want to give. They want to help build community however they can. All that spare change and roundups add up to a lot of money. The first year, we wanted to raise $100,000, and we did that in two weeks.
Foodland matches those donations as well, right?
JSW: Yes! Foodland does match a portion of each gift made, and that’s our way of supporting the people who support us: Making their donation be a little bit larger, making their dollars go a little bit farther. This is our 25th year, and we’ve raised almost $40 million over that time with our customers. When we started it, we had no idea what to expect. But it’s grown over the years and it’s been wonderful to see now that our customers come to expect it and our organizations really look forward to it.
How many nonprofits have signed up?
JSW: This year we have 623. For us, it was important to include a breadth of organizations, and we have so many that everybody who comes through the month of September will find something that they care about.
The main thing for us is that the spirit remains the same, and that the community still believes in Give Aloha and that the organizations that our customers care about continue to get support.
What has been the most rewarding part of Give Aloha so far?
JSW: Every year in October, around the time of my dad’s birthday, we have an event for the top 100 organizations receiving the most donations. We have their check ready in an envelope, and it’s always so exciting to watch when they open it. To see their reactions and to see how much it means to these organizations is really, really rewarding. Knowing that so many customers wanted to give to their organization, I think they are just so touched.
To learn more about Foodland’s Give Aloha campaign, visit foodland.com.
