Press Release 25th October 2023

"Round up, please" - BILLA, BIPA and PENNY have been supporting Caritas for 10 years

For 10 years now, Rewe customers and employees have shown great solidarity with people in need. Caritas expresses its gratitude for total donations of around 1.7 million euros.

(from left to right) Klaus Schwertner, Director of Caritas of the Archdiocese of Vienna, Marcel Haraszti, CEO of REWE International AG, Anna Parr, Secretary General of Caritas Austria and Michael Landau, President of Caritas Austria. / Copyright: © Robert Harson, Abdruck zu redaktionellen Zwecken honorarfrei, Reproduction for PR purposes free of charge

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Since September 2013, customers of BILLA, BILLA Plus, PENNY, BIPA, SUTTERLÜTY and many branches of the STRÖCK bakery have had the opportunity to work with Caritas to help people in need throughout Austria. With the words "Round up, please" at the checkout, the invoice amount is rounded up to the next full 10-cent amount, thus supporting Caritas aid projects in Austria. The campaign has already reached a total donation amount of around 1.7 million euros. Every cent goes directly to people in need.

The special thing about the campaign is that it offers a simple and uncomplicated way to support people in need. By rounding up the purchase amount by a few cents, every customer can contribute to helping people in need. It is also possible for customers with smaller purchases to make a contribution.

Michael Landau, President of Caritas Austria: "We are delighted that we are able to help many people in need every year with the donations from the 'Aufrunder bewirken Wunder' campaign. Be it children in our learning cafés, people in crisis or emergency situations, elderly people or women who have experienced violence. A big thank you goes to our customers, who make it clear that even something small can make a big difference. Together we make concrete help possible!"

Anna Parr, Secretary General of Caritas Austria: "We are grateful for the support we receive through this project - from our customers, but also from our employees, who show their solidarity with people who are not doing so well every day by asking them to "round up". Together, we make a significant difference to the lives of people in need. And especially in times of inflation, this joint help is urgently needed for so many people.

Klaus Schwertner, Director of Caritas of the Archdiocese of Vienna: "With the "Round up, please!" campaign, customers of BILLA, BILLA Plus, PENNY, BIPA and SUTTERLÜTY have been helping people in need in Austria for 10 years. Since the beginning, we have shown that small things can make a big difference when many people help together. Many thanks to REWE for the long-standing and reliable partnership, and of course to all donors who support important projects for people affected by poverty with the two words 'round up please'. Especially in times like these, we need solidarity and confidence."

Marcel Haraszti, Management Board member of REWE International AG: "The "Round up please!" campaign supports elderly people or mothers and their children in emergency situations, among others. Specifically, our customers have used this campaign to finance food and hygiene products or additional payments for energy and rent costs. For ten years now, this solidarity project has shown that even the smallest amounts can have a big impact."

Andreas Persigehl, Managing Director of BIPA: "We are particularly pleased to have been supporting the Caritas Mother and Child Homes with the "Round up, please" project for 10 years now and to be able to support mothers and children in difficult times. This initiative shows us that we can make an important contribution together and with many small donations. In addition to 'Aufrunder', BIPA has also been supporting the Caritas Mother and Child Homes with voucher donations for 14 years, this year to the value of 60,000 euros: the residents can use the vouchers to shop for themselves and their families in our stores. We are also particularly committed to the #MothersHelp donation campaign, in which we - together with P&G - were once again able to secure 3,000 shelters for mothers and children in need this year."

Kai Pataky, Managing Director of PENNY: "For 10 years now, PENNY customers have been able to make a big difference with small coins through the "Aufrunder bewirken Wunder" campaign. Every single cent donated goes 100% to Caritas Austria aid projects. A big thank you to our PENNY customers who support people in need with the two simple words "Round up, please" or the permanent "Round up"."