Liverpool,UK, 2016-Dec-13 — /EPR Retail News/ — Shop Direct, which operates retail brands including Very.co.uk and Littlewoods.com, raised £150,000 at its fourth biennial charity ball, which this year was a disco extravaganza.
Funds raised from the event will go towards helping Claire House Children’s Hospice to begin developing a world class, digitally-enabled hospice in Liverpool.
The ball, which was held on Friday 9 December at the Liverpool Exhibition Centre, saw 1,000 guests enjoy a spectacular evening of entertainment. They danced the night away and got lost in the music of disco queens Sister Sledge, as well as ‘Rivers of Babylon’ singers Boney M.
Guests also bid to win a selection of coveted items and experiences, with lots including a three day charter aboard a luxury yacht for 11 people, starting in Palma, Majorca, and VIP hospitality for 10 people to attend Liverpool FC vs Arsenal in a private box, which fetched £8,500 and £10,000 respectively.
Celebrities including the UK’s favourite interior designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, TV personality and DJ Kate Lawler, model Vogue Williams, Hollyoaks actresses Sophie Porley and Amanda Clapman, and TOWIE stars Jessica Wright and Lydia and Debbie Bright ensured it was a star-studded night. The evening was expertly hosted by Littlewoods.com brand ambassador, Myleene Klass.
Money raised from the event will go to Shop Direct’s 2016/17 charity partner, Claire House Children’s Hospice.
Shop Direct has committed to raising £400,000 for the charity through colleague activities and events, as well as providing industry-leading knowledge to help Claire House begin the development of a world class, digitally-enabled hospice in Liverpool. The new site will support the charity’s existing Wirral hospice, which currently helps over 200 children and their families each year.
The partnership will help Claire House put in place futureproof digital infrastructure at the new site, and fund and design an interactive multi-media suite for use by the children and families who visit. Shop Direct will also form a new innovation board with Claire House, which will help define what the new hospice will look like.
Alex Baldock, CEO at Shop Direct, said: “It was a fantastic night and we were blown away by the huge generosity of our guests – we can’t thank them enough. This money will make a massive difference to the way Claire House helps seriously and terminally ill children in the North West in the years to come.
“I also want to say a big thank you to our generous sponsors, partners, colleagues and volunteers for donating a wonderful selection of prizes, for their help on the night, and for their continued support of Shop Direct and Claire House.”
David Pastor, CEO at Claire House, commented: “We are incredibly grateful to everyone who has made such amazing donations. This money will help us reach more children in the North West who desperately need our help.
“We are also very excited that our partnership with Shop Direct not only allows us to raise money but also to take advantage of their digital expertise to help us deliver the best in care and support, now and in the future, to the hundreds of families who depend on us.”
ABOUT SHOP DIRECT
Shop Direct is the UK’s second largest pureplay digital retailer, with annual sales of almost £1.9 billion. Our digital department store brands are Very.co.uk, Littlewoods.com, VeryExclusive.co.uk and LittlewoodsIreland.ie. We receive an average of more than 1.2 million website visits every day, with 62% of online sales completed on mobile devices.
We exist to make good things easily accessible to more people. With our department store range of famous brands, market-leading ecommerce and technology capabilities and unique financial services products offering flexible ways to pay, we’re well placed to deliver on that promise.
We sell more than 1,300 famous brands, including big name labels and our own exclusive brands. We have four million customers and deliver 49 million products every year. Our free click and collect service, Collect+, delivers to 5,800 stores across the country, increasing ease and convenience for customers.
For more information on Shop Direct, visit www.shopdirect.com or follow us on Twitter at @ShopDirect.
ABOUT CLAIRE HOUSE CHILDREN’S HOSPICE
Claire House Children’s Hospice helps seriously and terminally ill children live life to the full by creating wonderful experiences and bringing back a sense of normality to family life. By providing specialist nursing care and emotional support Claire House helps families smile again when life couldn’t get any tougher.
Offering care whenever and wherever it’s needed, the hospice provides various therapies, day care, short break, counselling and end of life care. Claire House offers parents some desperately needed time off with the peace of mind that their children are being well looked after. The hospice provides someone to talk to and specialist counselling and family support. Families also get a chance to get to know each other and meet with other people going through similar experiences through days out, experiences and support groups.
www.clairehouse.org.uk
www.facebook.com/ClaireHouseCH
www.twitter.com/ClaireHouse
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Shop Direct:
Dave Lafferty
07552 283 266
Claire House Children’s Hospice:
Hannah Shannon
07904 529296
Source: Shop Direct