Housewares Business-to-business magazine for housewares retailers and their suppliers
Yankee Candle (International) has confirmed its continued support for Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Appeal – the only charity that raises funds exclusively for the Bristol Royal Hospital for Children.
With a current fundraising total in excess of £20,000, Yankee Candle will once again support the charity next year as a sponsor of its Shaun in the City project.
Following on from last year’s successful Gromit Unleashed Art Trail, which saw 80 giant, individually designed Gromit sculptures positioned throughout Bristol (where Yankee Candle Europe is headquartered), the charity has launched a new initiative with the Shaun the Sheep character.
Taking over the streets of Bristol and also, for the first time London, 120 giant Shaun the Sheep sculptures will create two art trails for the public to discover. Like last year’s Gromits, each Shaun the Sheep will be decorated by an artist, celebrity or designer and placed in a landmark location or green space across the capital in Spring 2015 and in Bristol in Summer 2015. At the end of the initiative, both flocks of sheep will be auctioned to raise money for sick children in hospitals across the UK.
Melanie Stack, Yankee Candle President and General Manager for Europe, Middle East and Africa, commented: “The Grand Appeal is an important charity to our local area [Yankee Candle (Europe) is headquartered in Bristol]. We’re really thrilled to be offering our support again for next year’s initiative and look forward to revealing our Shaun the Sheep sculpture designs.”
Wallace and Gromit is a British comedy animation created by Nick Park of Bristol-based Aardman Animations. He said: “The Shaun in the City trail means so much to me. This opportunity to bring an arts trail to life with Gromit’s pal Shaun the Sheep is baa-rilliant! Shaun is such a well-loved character with fans all over the world. He will add such colour to our streets and I’m sure many will flock to the city to be part of the fun. I’m particularly looking forward to working with so many talented artists and seeing how they will use Shaun as their canvas.”
Founded in 1995, Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Appeal has since raised over £27 million for the Bristol Royal Hospital for Children. The charity’s fundraising helps to support a wide range of life-saving medical equipment, family accommodation, and patient comforts, along with a programme of arts, music, education and play facilities in the hospital. The Grand Appeal is entirely independent from the NHS and receives no statutory funding, relying entirely on the generous support of the local community, businesses, grant-making trusts and other philanthropic organisations and individuals. It also has a very special relationship with Aardman Animations, who allow the charity to use the Wallace & Gromit characters to spearhead the fundraising.
