Spar to introduce contactless donations for Make-A-Wish
Retailer calls on public to embrace Strikepay technology for charitable giving, to safeguard the viability of critical charities
Print14 July 2021
Spar is currently trialling an innovative digital ‘Smart Poster’ collection solution in its nationwide estate of more than 400 stores that allows customers to donate to Spar’s official charity partner Make-A-Wish Ireland via their mobile telephones.
Since the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic, many people don’t carry cash anymore, which has had a devastating effect on the charity sector with in-person donations at an all-time low. This is particularly significant for Make-A-Wish Ireland as the charity does not receive any government funding and is dependent on donations from the public and the support of partners like Spar to continue granting wishes.
The new technology, Strikepay, is a portable personal payment tech designed to make paying convenient, safe and easy for all.
Using this contactless technology, customers in Spar stores across Ireland can now simply tap their smart phones on the special posters and a web page is opened on their device. The customer can then choose to donate directly to Make-A-Wish using the Apple or Android Pay capability on their phone or input their debit/card details directly.
As part of this innovative initiative, Spar will publicly campaign for people to openly embrace technology that facilitates cashless charitable giving, to safeguard the viability of critical charities across the country.
As a result of reduced in person charitable giving due to the Covid-19, it is estimated that Irish charities could have lost out on as much as €500m over the last 15 months.
Now more than ever, children need what Make-A-Wish can bring in the form of hope, strength, and joy,” said Susan O’Dwyer, chief executive of Make-A-Wish Ireland. “We are so grateful for the ongoing support of Spar and by deploying this innovative Strike technology in their stores, hopefully the public will react positively and donate using the posters.”
The initiative is designed to make it easier for people to donate money to worthy causes such as Make-A-Wish, while instilling confidence in those who still feel uncomfortable about handling cash and donating via the traditional bucket or in-store collection boxes. It is the latest sign of how Ireland is moving towards becoming a ‘cashless’ society.
“Over the last 15 months we have seen a big decline in the number of people carrying cash in our stores and this has impacted the charity sector particularly badly,” said Colin Donnelly, Spar sales director.
“As Spar’s official Charity partner, we are passionate about supporting the Make-A-Wish mission and are delighted to trial this innovative technology in our stores, which is a great example of how technology is playing a role in helping society one tap at a time,” he added. “Helping make these sick children’s wishes come true is a way to give them hope and strength for their individual journeys and Spar is proud to play whatever part we can.”
Oli Cavanagh, co-founder of Strikepay added that the group was “thrilled to be part of this fantastic initiative” and “to see Strikepay being used in the way that it was intended – to solve a pressing issue for people and organisations that have been unintentionally impacted by our increasingly cashless society”.
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