de Gruchy colleagues walk a marathon in store to support Freeda

Colleagues at de Gruchy department store will take on a unique challenge this October, swapping till points for treadmills to collectively walk the full 26.2 miles of a marathon inside the St Helier store.

The fundraising event will take place on Thursday 2nd and Friday 3rd October, with all proceeds going to Freeda, de Gruchy’s charity partner of the year.

Timed to coincide with the build-up to the Standard Chartered Jersey Marathon that weekend, the in-store event offers a chance for colleagues and customers alike to get involved in the island’s marathon spirit, without needing to take to the roads.

The treadmill, generously loaned by local supporter Thom Hennessy, will be placed under the escalator in the beauty department. Colleagues will take turns walking until the full distance has been achieved, with customers encouraged to cheer them on, make donations in collection buckets, or give via the team’s JustGiving page.

Simon Youden, Store Director at de Gruchy, will officially start the challenge at 9.30am on Thursday 2nd October. Commenting he said, “We wanted to do something fun and visible in store to raise funds for Freeda and also to show our support for Jersey’s marathon weekend. Walking a marathon as a team on a treadmill will be quite a challenge and we hope our customers will get behind us, donate generously and help us to fundraise for Freeda.”

All money raised will support Freeda in their work providing safe housing, support and advocacy for women and families affected by domestic abuse in Jersey.

For more information and to donate online here, or visit JustGiving.com and search de Gruchy.