Like so many of us, Stéphane Roy wanted to do something. Two years ago, Roy, the manager of a Jean Coutu Pharmacy in Saint-Lambert, Que., learned that a colleague had been stricken with breast cancer, for the second time.
The franchise’s 60-plus employees began fundraising initiatives like bowlathons, lotteries and product sales. While each initiative had its merits, Roy wondered if they could do more.
That’s when he learned of FundScrip. Self described on the company’s website as, “Canada’s leading gift card fundraising program,” FundScrip essentially functions as the go-between for groups wanting to raise money for a cause, and suppliers who want to sell their products and services through gift cards.
So what’s in it for FundScrip? According to president and CEO Christopher Hill, “We buy our gift cards at pre-negotiated volume discounts, sell them at face value to end-users and then split the difference with the majority going to the campaign beneficiaries.”
