Survey Shows Majority of Americans Will Make Charitable Donations This Holiday Season
SANTA MONICA, Calif., Nov. 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Thousands of families can count on a holiday meal this year thanks to the kick-off of the Big Red Bucket food drive through The Macerich Company (NYSE: MAC) shopping centers nationwide. The program, now in its third year, asks shoppers, mall merchants and other businesses to help fill buckets with a variety of food items for people in need.
The campaign comes at a time when Americans are particularly willing to support charitable efforts. According to a new Shopping in America survey, conducted for Macerich by August Partners, an average of 61 percent of shoppers plan to donate to a charity this holiday season.
Macerich shopping centers will conduct the Big Red Bucket campaign throughout November and December. Supporters are asked to fill each 16-gallon bucket with specified non-perishable items for a complete holiday meal, including a gift certificate for a turkey or ham. Once filled, the buckets will be delivered to families through local non-profit organizations and food banks.
"Our centers are proud to unite communities in helping to support families in a meaningful way this holiday season," said Susan Valentine, senior vice president of marketing for The Macerich Company. "Last year the Big Red Bucket campaign helped to feed more than 2,200 families across the country and our goal is to increase that amount by at least 10 percent, providing special holiday meals to hundreds more this year."
Shopping in America is a national shopper intercept survey that studies consumer shopping trends. The survey is conducted among more than 6,200 shoppers within malls that are geographically spread proportionately among the four major U.S. Census regions, approximating the weight of the population residing in those regions. There are 20 participating malls located in 17 states; 14 of the shopping malls are Macerich owned. The Shopping in America report can be found at http://www.shoppinginamerica.biz .
The Macerich Company is a fully integrated self-managed and self- administered real estate investment trust, which focuses on the acquisition, leasing, management, development and redevelopment of regional malls throughout the United States. The Company is the sole general partner and owns an 81% ownership interest in The Macerich Partnership, L.P. Macerich now owns interests in properties totaling approximately 62 million square feet consisting primarily of interests in 63 regional malls. Additional information about The Macerich Company can be obtained from the Company's website at http://www.macerich.com
SOURCE The Macerich Company
CONTACT:
Tresa Hardt, thardt@lovellpr.com , or
Kim Craig,
kcraig@lovellpr.com ,
+1-972-788-4511,
both for The Macerich Company