P&G wanted a stronger emotional connection with Filipino consumers. There was no real budget, so we looked into available resources—like their partnership with the Red Cross, which receives 18 tons of donated clothes yearly. A good number are inappropriate for calamity victims, who have more urgent needs like food, water and medicine.

P&G, in partnership with the Red Cross, sought to turn them into life essentials through Ariel Aid Couture. Clothes were sorted from piles in the Red Cross warehouses, washed with Ariel, and styled by top fashion personalities. These were then sold at Ariel Aid Couture pop-up stores. Price tags and receipts showed life essential equivalents. There was a real-time sales tracker on-site and online. The cause was promoted pro bono across various media.

Ariel Aid Couture raised almost Php 1.2 million worth of aid for calamity victims. P&G earned about Php 17 million in free media value.

For three weeks, clothes were sorted from piles in the Red Cross warehouses and washed with Ariel at a laundromat. Fashion personalities styled ensembles. We entered into pro bono partnerships with organizations and celebrities.

Four weeks before the event, we spread the word. We released press kits and online promotional materials. Posters were put up in malls.

On August 2-3, 2014, the clothes were sold at our pop-up stores. Design details spoke of aid. Price tags and receipts had life essential equivalents. There were real-time sales trackers on-site and online.

The project came from the idea “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” The inappropriate clothing donations seemed worthless, but could be valuable to people who love to shop and appreciate good value. To a public inundated by numerous causes, Ariel Aid Couture offered guiltless shopping, making it stand out from other fundraisers and reinforcing P&G’s commitment to touching lives.

From zero investment on clothes that otherwise would’ve been left rotting in Red Cross warehouses, Ariel Aid Couture raised almost Php 1.2 million in two days.

The real-time sales tracker summarized this as amounting to 20,383 hot meals, 7,578 bottles of water, 1,123 medicine kits, 1,075 wound cleanser kits, 320 blanket and mat sets, 415 mosquito nets, 215 hygiene kits, and 442 food supply packs. These were donated to the survivors of Typhoon Haiyan and other calamities.

According to Campaigns PR Inc. (CAPRI), P&G earned a total media value of about Php 17 million—without any actual media money spent. This included values from print, broadcast, and social media. The campaign also earned a total of 26,314,009 impressions.

Ariel Aid Couture provided a long-term solution for clothes deemed unsuitable for distribution during relief operations, allowing P&G and the Red Cross to continue responding to the immediate needs of Filipinos.