Launched by Philip Grother and Maria Lucia Romero, the platform aims to empower bearded men to raise funds for causes they care about.
When Philip Grother, founder of Stepping-Stone Luxembourg, started growing out his beard at the start of the pandemic it became a recurring joke that he was going to raise funds for charity with it.
What was meant as a joke initially, quickly turned into something more concrete, especially since Philip was confronted with the knowledge that his dad was going to pass away from an incurable disease called Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis.
Like with so many of these diseases, there are different charities that offer support to sufferers and their families, and they are always looking for funds to support their activities. Realising that there were many bearded men out there who wanted to raise money for different causes, Philip started looking for a platform helping them achieve their goals.
While he found many YouTube videos of similar-minded individuals, most of them remained disconnected and failed to capture the full value they wanted to deliver. This is why Philip and Maria Lucia Romero, the co-founders of Beards for Charity, decided to deliver on this unmet need. On 1 September, they are launching their crowdfunding campaign for Beards for Charity to raise funds to build their platform.
This platform will bring together:
- Bearded men
- Supporters of causes and charities (men and women alike)
- Causes and charities that are looking for funds
- Barbers who want to be part of the movement
- Companies who want to become sponsors
One Beard, One Story
Once built, the platform will allow any bearded person willing to sacrifice their beard to create his own fundraising campaign, set a target amount to reach by a specific date and select a cause or charity.
Once the campaign is set up, he shares it with his friends, family and wider network via social media and other means, so that they can donate directly to his campaign.
To keep his supporting community engaged, the campaigner tells his audience about his story and the journey that he’s been on. When he reaches his fundraising goal, he uploads the final “before and after” pictures and videos of his beard being shaved off for the good cause, and the funds get released to the cause or charity of his choice.
Through Beards for Charity, barbers can also accept for their patrons to pay it forward, which means that men can pay for other men to be groomed and handsome. Philip and Maria believe that self-care helps to increase one’s sense of self-worth, which plays a big role in improving mental health. This could be the first step toward making lasting changes in one’s life.
Companies can become corporate sponsors of Beards for Charity in exchange for advertising, and they will be able to sponsor campaigns by doubling the amount raised on each campaign.
Finally, Beards for Charity will become a social impact company, and the team is open to receiving guidance and mentoring from people who have been on that journey before. To support their initiative in building this platform, check out their crowdfunding campaign.
