IKEA Canada donates $500,000 to alleviate COVID-19 impact

27 / 10 / 2020

By Marwa Nassar - -

IKEA Canada has donated $500,000 in funding and in-kind products to support vulnerable communities across Canada in recovering from the impacts of COVID-19.

This relief effort will help address issues of poverty, affordable housing, and health equity by ensuring those most impacted by the pandemic have an affordable and accessible place to call home.

This donation represents the next phase of IKEA Canada’s $2.3 million commitment to provide urgent support to communities impacted by COVID-19, announced in April 2020.

“Our simple yet powerful vision to create a better everyday life for the many Canadians has never been more important than it is today,” said Michael Ward, CEO and Chief Sustainability Officer, IKEA Canada. “The global COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the lives of all Canadians and we remain committed to providing relief to those who need it most so that they can have a safe and comfortable place to call home.”

The $500,000 donation will support the National Association of Friendship Centers, Black Health Alliance, Save the Children, Boys and Girls Club of Canada and Furniture Bank.

“Every year across Canada, tens of thousands of families need quality home furnishings to turn empty housing into furnished homes. In 2020 IKEA has already supported over 1000 families overcome furniture poverty and start fresh with safe and secure places to call home,” says Dan Kershaw, Executive Director of Furniture Bank. “This support allows us to accelerate the work further and build up the Furniture Bank Network across Canada in partnership with Furniture Link and IKEA.”

IKEA Canada has worked diligently with its network of trusted partners and government agencies to ensure these donations will meet the critical needs of the communities that have been most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. These partnerships also support IKEA Canada’s long-term commitment in promoting greater racial equity, inclusion and support for the Black community, Indigenous peoples and people of color across Canada.

As part of its first phase of emergency relief efforts, IKEA Canada supported over 80,000 Canadians through $1.7 million in product donations through a network of more than 130 organizations across the country. The furniture retailer was able to donate urgently needed supplies ranging from bedding, mattresses, and children’s toys to vulnerable communities including homeless, newcomers, refugees, children, and Indigenous communities, as well as local hospitals and healthcare centers. Additionally, IKEA Canada donated approximately $345,000 in IKEA food to more than 100 local food banks along with 240,000 N95 masks to local hospitals and healthcare centers across the country.

This donation contributes to IKEA Canada’s ambition to create a lasting social impact in its local communities as part of its People and Planet Positive Strategy and is part of Ingka Group’s global commitment provide COVID-19 relief efforts in the 30 countries in which it operates.