Belk Spring Charity Sale Raises Over $5.3 Million

In its first Charity Sale of the year, Belk, Inc. raised more than $5.3 million for nearly 8,000 nonprofits across its 16-state footprint. On Saturday, April 27 the four-hour semi-annual shopping event served as an excellent fundraising tool for participating organizations that sell $5 tickets to their supporters. It's also an opportunity for customers to give back to local nonprofits while taking advantage of special in-store discounts on purchases during the event.

"Giving back to our communities has been a Belk tradition, and our Charity Sale is one of our favorite ways to positively and directly impact each community that we serve," said Jessica Graham, vice president, communications and community relations of Belk, Inc. "The Charity Sale continues to grow and we are grateful to our associates and community partners for their role in making it a success."

Last year's Charity Sale supported thousands of nonprofits such as March of Dimes, American Cancer Society, Crisis Assistance Ministry, Special Olympics, Teens Do Care, Literacy Council, United Way, Girl Talk International, North Carolina Zoo Society, American Red Cross, animal rescue organizations, local school athletic and scholastic organizations and numerous local churches.

In 2012, Belk raised more than $10 million for charities during its spring and fall Charity Sales..

Charlotte, N.C.-based Belk, Inc. (belk.com) is the nation's largest family owned and operated department store company with 301 Belk stores located in 16 Southern states. Founded in 1888 by William Henry Belk in Monroe, N.C., the company is in the third generation of Belk family leadership and has been committed to community involvement since its inception. Each year, Belk gives a portion of its pretax income back to the communities it serves. In fiscal year ending Jan. 31, 2013, the company and its associates, customers and vendors, donated more than $19 million to those communities. Belk.com offers a wide assortment of national brands and private label fashion apparel, shoes and accessories for the entire family along with top name cosmetics, a wedding registry and a large selection of quality merchandise for the home. To connect with Belk go to Belk Get Connected.

Belk has a strong tradition of community involvement and philanthropy dating back to our founders nearly 125 years ago. Our company, along with our associates, customers and vendors, contributed more than $19 million to local communities during the past fiscal year. Of the total amount, Belk corporate dollars funded $6.2 million to more than 250 nonprofit organizations, with a focus on education, breast cancer research and awareness, and community strengthening. The remainder of the funding includes associate, vendor and customer dollars raised in Belk-led charitable initiatives, including Belk Charity Sale.

Belk commits to give 2.5 percent of its pretax income each year back to the communities it serves. Last year, Belk Charity Sales (one in spring, one in fall) together raised a total of more than $10 million that benefited thousands of local charities throughout Belk markets. We raised $1.6 million for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation through our 2012 campaign, far surpassing our goal of $1 million and completing a three-year, $3 million commitment to Komen. In January, the company launched a new BelkGives "On the Go" mobile mammography screening center that will travel to 116 Belk markets in the Carolinas and Tennessee throughout 2013. The program represents Belk's largest investment to date in the fight against breast cancer.

Modern. Southern. Style. Belk seeks to satisfy the modern Southern lifestyle like no one else, so that our customers get the fashion they desire and the value they deserve. Our vision is for the modern Southern woman to count on Belk first - for her, for her family, for life.