Club 21 and MasterCard Celebrate 40 Years of Fashion, with a Heart
Club 21 Collaborates with MasterCard to Help Women and Girls through MasterCard’s Purchase with Purpose™ Program
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Singapore, 30 July 2012 – Club 21, a leading luxury fashion retailer, and MasterCard Worldwide are teaming up to support seven charitable organizations in the Asia/Pacific region through the MasterCard Purchase with Purpose™ program, in conjunction with Club 21’s 40th anniversary.
Shoppers at Club 21 can now enjoy the Autumn/Winter 2012 fashion season while giving back to society. Between 1 August, 2012 and 30 September, 2012, MasterCard will make a contribution for every transaction made with a MasterCard card at all Club 21 stores in seven cities. All purchases made at Club 21′s online store, to be launched in August, will also earn a donation.
Club 21’s sister company, COMO Hotels and Resorts, has supported the MasterCard Purchase with Purpose program since 2010, raising a total of US$ 75,580 to date. This year, both companies will collaborate with MasterCard in luxury fashion and hospitality, respectively.
The funds generated from the Club 21-MasterCard collaboration will support programs including: computer literacy and training courses for rural women and farmers in Thailand and Indonesia, professional skills training and development for underserved women in Singapore and Hong Kong; and certification courses for Aboriginal women in Taiwan, abused women in Malaysia, and young refugee women in Australia.
Club 21 is delighted to collaborate with MasterCard on Purchase with Purpose, explained Linda Locke, marketing director, Club 21. “Over the last 40 years, Club 21 has developed a base of loyal and supportive customers. This program lets our customers make a social impact with their purchases, with the assurance that we have vetted the organizations they are supporting. We have taken the same care in selecting these passionate and effective organizations as we do with our collections every season.”
Georgette Tan, group head, Communications, Asia/Pacific, Middle East & Africa, MasterCard Worldwide, said, “We are excited to work with Club 21 to provide MasterCard cardholders with a platform to give back to society. We believe education is key to improving the quality of life for disadvantaged women and children in Asia/Pacific. As such, we are always looking for new ways to provide cardholders the avenue to make a difference in these underserved communities.”
MasterCard’s philanthropic efforts are focused on furthering financial inclusion through entrepreneurship in order to help individuals overcome barriers to financial inclusion and ultimately achieve positive economic outcomes for themselves, their families and their communities. Through MasterCard’s core competencies, technology, people, and charitable giving, MasterCard makes a difference in people’s lives around the world.
The Club 21-MasterCard Purchase with Purpose collaboration will involve Club 21 stores in Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and the Club 21 online store at www.club21global.com.
The beneficiaries for the Club 21-MasterCard Purchase include The Social Studio, Australia; the Hong Kong Women Development Association; Yayasan Mitra Mandiri Indonesia; Women’s Aid Organisation, Malaysia; Beautiful People in association with Singapore Committee for UN Women; Zhi-Shan Foundation, Taiwan; and Vocational Park, Chaipattana Foundation, Thailand.
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About Club 21
Club 21 is a luxury retail company established in 1972 in Singapore. Its portfolio includes fashion, accessories and homewares. Club 21 operates multi-label fashion stores as well as licensed boutiques in Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, the United Kingdom and USA. It manages brands such as Donna Karan, ck Calvin Klein, Giorgio Armani, A|X Armani Exchange, Balenciaga, Marni, Mulberry, Dolce & Gabbana, Diesel, Paul Smith, Issey Miyake, Jil Sander and Dries Van Noten among others. Club 21 also operates, under license, ck Calvin Klein and DKNY Jeans. A joint venture with Giorgio Armani S.p.A. is expanding the A|X Armani Exchange brand world-wide. In the homewares sector, Club 21 Gallery in Singapore and Bangkok carry a carefully curated selection of home and lifestyle accessories. While each of these interests operates independently from the other, there is common commitment to a modern style and quality of product. www.club21global.com
Club 21 40th anniversary
This year, Club 21 celebrates its 40th anniversary. To commemorate this anniversary, Club 21 has planned a series of exciting initiatives throughout 2012, including the opening of flagship stores Mulberry and Paul Smith and new boutiques for Alexander Wang, Issey Miyake Pleats Please and Stella McCartney in Singapore, a new Club 21 Men boutique in Kuala Lumpur, the launch of e-commerce across seven Asian countries and a revamped global website.
MasterCard Purchase with Purpose™
MasterCard’s corporate social responsibility platform (CSR) in Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA) is focused primarily on bettering the quality of life for women and children. MasterCard does this by supporting a broad range of women’s and children’s causes through scholarships, financial assistance, educational and various sustainability programs, helping provide them with the skills required to stand on their own feet and support themselves and their families. This ultimately improves life and prospects within the communities that these empowered women live and work. Apart from the educational aspects of MasterCard’s CSR programs in APMEA, consumer education is an important area of focus for MasterCard given the significance of financial literacy in improving lives and the socioeconomic standing of families throughout the region.
A key component of MasterCard’s social responsibility and citizenship efforts across the region is MasterCard Purchase with Purpose™. Based on the concept of transactional philanthropy, it is at the heart of a drive by MasterCard to encourage responsible spending while, at the same time, making a difference in someone else’s life. Across APMEA, MasterCard Purchase with Purpose initiatives involve cardholders in the company’s efforts to give back to the community whenever they use their MasterCard cards. More information on MasterCard Purchase with Purpose in the region is available at www.mastercard.com/sea/purchasewithpurpose.
About MasterCard Worldwide
MasterCard (NYSE: MA), www.mastercard.com, is a global payments and technology company. It operates the world’s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. MasterCard’s products and solutions make everyday commerce activities – such as shopping, traveling, running a business and managing finances – easier, more secure and more efficient for everyone. Follow us on Twitter @MasterCardNews, join the discussion on the Cashless Conversations Blog and subscribe for the latest news.
Media contacts:
Georgette Tan, MasterCard Worldwide, +65 6390 5971, georgette_tan@mastercard.com
Alina Morais, Weber Shandwick, +65 6825 8203, amorais@webershandwick.com
Cindy Choo, Weber Shandwick, +65 6825 8035, cchoo@webershandwick.com
Celine Tan, Club 21, +65 6304 1415, celine.tan@club21global.com