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Yes to Giving: Target Aims to Donate $25 Million to School Kids in Need

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According to a 2013 study, US public school teachers spent about $3.2 billion on classroom supplies in the 2012-2013 school year, an estimated $1.6 billion from their own pockets, or about $500 a year per teacher. And that's not including what families provide to teachers so their kids are equipped to learn.

That's why Target is upping its corporate citizenship commitment with a variation on TOMS one-for-one model by partnering with Yoobi, a Target-exclusive brand of colorful school supplies and a tag line that promotes the partnership, “One for you, one for me.” Today, Target announced it's aiming to donate up to $25 millon in supplies this upcoming back-to-school as part of this education commitment.

Yoobi, a clever twist on "You Be," launched at Target.com and in-store on June 1 as part of its Made to Matter collection of pro-social brands. For any purchase from the colorful collection of folders, notebooks, pens, crayons, glue sticks and rulers, Target will contribute to classroom packs that contain 900 items, about enough for one K-3 class of 30 students per year.

Yoobi was founded by Ido Leffler, a social entrepreneur who co-founded the Yes To (Carrots, Blueberries, etc.) brand of natural beauty products, and whose mother was a teacher. "$500 is a lot for a teacher to spend,” Leffler told Deseret News. “We thought, we can help solve this problem." 

As part of its Target tie-in, Yoobi is working with the Kids in Need Foundation, a non-profit that supplies what they need most. "If you are having trouble feeding and clothing your family, school supplies are low on the list behind things like food," stated Dave Smith, executive director of Kids in Need. “But it's a really tough way for kids to go into the classroom, it's embarrassing to get to school and not have the basic things that others do."

Five years ago, the number of US children living in poverty was 13 million. Today that number has climbed to 16 million—or 22 percent of all children—according to the US Census Bureau. "The need almost becomes insatiable, we have so many more kids now who need help," said Smith.

Kids in Need distributes supplies to regional resource centers, where teachers who work at schools where 70 percent of the students are on free or reduced-price lunch programs can receive supplies free-of-charge. 

Different from TOMS or Warby Parker, most Yoobi products retail for between $1 and $9. "Our philosophy is that these should be things that everyone can afford," said Leffler. "It's a guilt-free pricing model."

While it's not the only colorful line of stationery products targeting kids (watch out for Australia's globally-ambitious Smiggle brand), Yoobi’s mission aligns with Target’s commitment to education. As Target's press release notes, “Since 1946, we’ve given 5 percent of our profit—which today equals more than $4 million per week—to communities, and we’re on track to give $1 billion for education by 2015.”  

Jill Sando, Target SVP Home, Merchandising added, “We are proud to partner with Yoobi, launch their one-of-a-kind product line exclusively at Target, and give our guests another easy way to make a positive difference in the lives of others.” She added that as social causes are increasingly valued by their customers, Target was willing to invest in Yoobi "and spend less in other areas." 

Because of that corporate commitment support, Target and Yoobi are on track to give more than 30,000 classrooms and 750,000 kids free Yoobi school supplies during the 2014-2015 school year. "Sometimes the intangible message is most valuable," said Smith. "You're saying to a student, someone is giving something to you, someone is concerned about your success. Someone believes in you."

• Connect with Sheila on Twitter: @srshayon


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