AUSTRALIA | Drakes celebrated a significant milestone at its annual Charity Showbag Morning Tea at Kooyonga Golf Club.
This year’s event celebrated the 26th anniversary of the initiative, which has now raised AUD two million for local charities. The event brought together suppliers and charity partners to commemorate this community-driven effort's success and positive impact.
AUD 188,058 was raised and presented to our five charity partners—Bedford Group, Flinders Foundation, The Hospital Research Foundation, SA Police Legacy, and St John Ambulance—representing the proceeds from the sale of 18,000 show bags in 2024. This marked the most significant number of show bags ever sold and the highest donation to date.
Each charity partner received an equal share of AUD 37,611.70, which will directly support their vital work in the South Australian community.
“When dad came up with this harebrained idea to get our suppliers together to create the Drakes Charity Showbag, I don’t think he ever thought this initiative would be able to raise AUD 2 million for our very worthy Charity Partners,” said John-Paul Drake, Director of Drakes.
“We couldn’t have done this without the support of our supplier partners and customers - it’s become an annual event that everyone looks forward to.”
One key aspect of the Charity Showbags initiative is the support of Drakes’ suppliers, who generously donate products to fill the show bags.
In 2024, 35 supplier partners contributed over 456,000 products, which helped create three variations of show bags, all valued at over AUD 126 each. The bags were sold for just AUD 14 at Drakes South Australian supermarkets during the week of the Royal Adelaide Show.
“Dad’s always said, ‘you can’t take out of this world unless you put back in’ – it’s why we have the Drakes Charity Showbag and the Drakes Community Dollars program, and also why we sponsor and donate to hundreds of local sporting clubs, charities and community groups. Our communities are an integral part of our ecosystem, and we’re proud to be able to give back in any way we can.”
For 20 years, the Bedford Group has played an essential role in the initiative by packing the showbags at their facility. This long-standing partnership has created more than 600 job opportunities for Bedford employees, which continues to support their charity efforts.
Since its inception in 1999, Drakes has raised a whopping AUD 2 million for the Charity Showbag initiative alone. They extended their heartfelt thanks to the suppliers who contributed to the success of the 2024 show bags.
