The Store that sells Hope evolved. This time, it sold Hope in the form of Stories of Hope. Two stores were built. One in Lisbon and the other Madrid. Two stores, located in two of the most popular shopping malls. This year, the Hope was sold in a new package, as it was conceived as an exact replica of a bookstore. But with one big difference: each and every book had all their pages blank inside.

Why blank? Because the more people bought HOPE, the bigger were the chances that the stories suggested by the titles would become real. Example: The child that learned to smile. Each book represented a cause of the Red Cross.After last year’s edition, the Store that sells Hope got bigger. as both stores opened simultaneously in Portugal and Spain.

To launch the New Store, a PR campaign helped us to first present the new concept and mobilise the media, the public and opinion leaders.Direct marketing, outdoor, TV and radio were used in the week prior to the launch and as we approached Christmas to help increased the demand and the Store’s visibility. A version of the store was created for the web as it served to create awareness outside of Portugal and Spain.Promotion was heavily used in the stores and in the surrounding area of the shopping centers.The Store was also presented in talk shows and newspaper interviews, both from famous ambassadors and the Red Cross.This way, the new Store gained even more visibility than last year. With numerous Stories of Hope being written everyday.

Selling Stories of Hope was embraced in both countries. With the opening nights drawing record crowd to the Stores. Stories of Hope became one of the happiest endings of the year as they helped the Red Cross to again, believe in the power of changing the way people see a gift. Attendance rose with every passing day and both in Spain and Portugal the Red Cross achieved a level of notoriety like never before. With this new concept, the Store that Sells Hope has evolved to a point where we can see it becoming a standard. Always with Hope at centre stage.