A new gifting website in the UAE has made it easier for residents to give to charity.
Injoy Giving, which launched recently, is stocked with gift vouchers for restaurants, spas, health sessions and beach club passes. With every purchase on the website, the founders will donate to World Food Programme to provide nutritious meals for children.
The website is the brainchild of Dubai-based husband and wife duo Natasha and Martin Rockstrom who tried a similar giving initiative in their native Stockholm.
“A group of elementary students and executive MBA colleagues came together to experiment with the power of giving,” says Natasha, who is from the United Kingdom.
“We sold T-shirts to raise money to buy bananas. Then we sold those bananas on the streets in exchange for hugs. Buy a banana, pay with a hug. We delivered 1,200 hugs. Giving created happiness value for both the giver and the receiver.”
With her philanthropic experiences and Martin’s creative marketing background, they set up Injoy Giving to widen the reach.
“It’s a simple, easy and fun way to send gifts to friends and loved ones while making a difference with a few clicks of a button,” says Natasha.
“Our purpose is to connect people through acts of giving and for them to experience generosity that awakens happiness. Even gifting a cup of coffee is enough to feed a child for a day.”
The couple also want to give back by identifying “generosity ambassadors” in the community and by organising not-for-profit events. Future plans include collaborations with not-for-profit organisations.
Visit www.injoygiving.com to do your bit.
aahmed@thenational.ae