While some people might be lining up on Black Friday to jump on the latest holiday bargains, these people are lining up outside of a unique pop-up store so they can buy holiday gifts for refugees.
Choose Love is a shop that is stocked with important items and resources that customers can buy for refugees in need – or as the store puts it, customers can “shop your heart out, leave with nothing, and feel the love”.
The shop is stocked with everything from emergency blankets, tents, warm clothing, and hygienic supplies to educational materials and keys to a home. All of the items purchased at the Choose Love pop-ups are then distributed across Europe and the Middle East.
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According to Help Refugees, the nonprofit behind the initiative, their charitable efforts in 2017 collectively raised the equivalent of $962,000 (£750,000).
The charity was so successful with its location in London last year, it also opened up a secondary location in New York City for 2018.
Additionally, the shops will now be stocked with sleeping bags and supplies that can be purchased for homeless groups in the UK and US.
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“Christmas is a time of giving in abundance, but it makes you think about people who aren’t as lucky as we are,” Josie Naughton, the chief executive of Help Refugees, told The Guardian. “When you look at the stats of how much money is spent on Black Friday and compare that to the need in the world, it’s quite shocking.
“We just really wanted to show there was another way to look at consumerism and another way to look at Black Friday.”
Be Sure And Share The Inspiring New With Your Friends On Social Media – Photos by Alex Green / Help Refugees