How Charities Use Merchandise to Drive Awareness and Fundraising: Gidget Foundation & Bear Cottage
By Karen Platt, Co-Founder, CandleXchange
Charitable organisations face a constant challenge: raising the funds they need while simultaneously building awareness and community. Branded merchandise has become one of the most effective tools for doing both at once. When a product is high quality, meaningful, and tied to a real story, it raises money, deepens relationships with supporters, and carries the charity's message wherever it goes.
Candles, in particular, have proven to be a powerful fundraising product for Australian charities. They're consumable, giftable, and — when made by a social enterprise — they carry a story that resonates with supporters on multiple levels.
Why Branded Merchandise Works for Charities
The best charity merchandise does more than sit on a shelf. It works continuously for the organisation in several ways.
Every item sold raises funds directly — often at a higher value per transaction than a standard donation, because people are receiving something tangible in return. Every item in circulation becomes a conversation starter, building recognition among people who may never have heard of the cause. And products that carry real meaning — a bespoke fragrance created for a children's hospice, a candle that supports a mental health program — create an emotional connection that turns one-time donors into long-term supporters.
High-quality merchandise also rewards fundraisers. When supporters can offer something genuinely desirable at a charity event or gala, they raise more. Participants feel proud to give and receive it. That pride translates into advocacy — supporters share the product, the story, and the cause in their own networks.
CandleXchange Charity Partnerships
As a certified social enterprise, CandleXchange has partnered with Australian charities to develop branded candle fundraising programs that are meaningful, beautifully presented, and tied directly to real impact. Two of those partnerships illustrate what's possible.
Gidget Foundation Australia
The Gidget Foundation supports the emotional wellbeing of expectant and new parents affected by perinatal depression and anxiety — a critical and often under-resourced area of mental health. Their mission is to provide early intervention so that families can access the support they need before a mental health challenge becomes a crisis.
Gidget Foundation has sold over 600 CandleXchange candles, with each purchase contributing directly to their wellbeing initiatives. The candles are made from natural soy wax and fragranced with natural oils — clean-burning, beautifully presented, and aligned with the comfort and calm the Foundation offers its community. Supporters who purchase a candle aren't just buying a product — they're participating in a funding cycle that keeps Gidget's programs running and its community growing.
Bear Cottage
Bear Cottage is NSW's only children's hospice, providing specialist palliative care and respite for children with life-limiting conditions, and support for their families at one of the hardest times a family can face. Their fundraising model relies heavily on community generosity and corporate support.
CandleXchange worked closely with Bear Cottage to develop a bespoke fragrance called Beachside — carefully crafted to evoke the calm, restorative coastal environment that the hospice embodies for the families it supports. Beachside candles are gifted to bereaved families and volunteers as a meaningful token of remembrance, and sold at fundraising events including gala dinners and the popular Superhero Week campaign.
The candles have become a signature part of Bear Cottage's fundraising identity — a product that supporters recognise, request, and return to buy again. That kind of repeat engagement is rare in charity merchandise and speaks to the quality and resonance of a product made with genuine care.
How to Build an Effective Charity Merchandise Program
For charities considering a merchandise program of their own, a few principles make the difference between products that sit in storage and ones that build genuine momentum.
Start by aligning the product with the mission. A candle for a mental health charity makes intuitive sense — it signals calm, presence, and care. A bespoke fragrance for a children's hospice tells a story. The product should feel like an extension of the cause, not a generic item with a logo applied.
Quality matters more than volume. One well-made product that supporters are proud to display, gift, and talk about is more valuable than a box of cheap items that end up in a drawer. Quality also justifies a price point that genuinely contributes to fundraising goals.
Make it easy to purchase. Whether through an online shop, at events, or through corporate giving programs, reducing friction at the point of purchase increases conversion. Our fundraising solutions team can help charities set up a program that works for their supporters.
Finally, tell the story behind the product. Packaging, event displays, and online descriptions should connect the item directly to the cause — explaining what the purchase does, who it helps, and why it matters. That context turns a transaction into a contribution.
About CandleXchange's Approach to Charity Partnerships
CandleXchange is a Social Traders certified social enterprise. Our UpCandle program donates candles to domestic violence survivors, and our Return & Swap model keeps glass containers out of landfill. The social impact story that underpins our business makes our candles a natural fit for charities that want their merchandise to carry a double purpose — supporting the charity's mission and demonstrating values that their supporters share.
We work with charity partners to develop custom fragrances, bespoke presentation, and branded candle programs that reflect each organisation's identity. View our branded merchandise options or learn more about our social impact to understand what we stand for as a business.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can CandleXchange create a custom candle for our charity?
Yes. We work with charity partners to develop bespoke fragrances, custom presentation, and branded candle programs tailored to each organisation. The Beachside fragrance for Bear Cottage is one example of what's possible. Contact our fundraising solutions team to discuss your requirements.
What makes CandleXchange candles suitable for charity fundraising?
Our soy candles are hand-poured in Brookvale, Sydney, from natural soy wax and natural oils. They're high quality, genuinely giftable, and made by a certified social enterprise — which means your supporters are buying a product with its own social impact story, on top of supporting your cause.
Does CandleXchange donate a portion of proceeds to charity?
Our model works differently. We partner with charities to create branded candle programs — the charity sells or gifts the candles and retains the fundraising margin. Separately, our UpCandle program donates candles to domestic violence survivors using returned glass containers, which supporters can also contribute to directly by donating an UpCandle.