Spirit of Belron Challenge raises €2.5m to help children & young people in South Africa

Hurtigruta Carglass, together with the rest of the global Belron® business, has raised €2,5m to help transform the lives of thousands of children and young people in South Africa, where Hurtigruta Carglass`s parent company, Belron, was founded.

The money was raised at Belron’s annual charity event, the Spirit of Belron Challenge (SOBC) and supports Belron’s charity partner, Afrika Tikkun.

This year’s Challenge saw over 12,000 participants swim, cycle, run, walk or travel by wheelchair to raise money for Afrika Tikkun. SOBC was open to all employees, together with families, friends, suppliers, and partners. An incredible 10,500 people from around the world joined the Challenge online and with a further 2,000 taking part in the ‘Day at Dorney’ event in Windsor, UK. Hurtigruta Carglass entered 61 people to SOBC and contributed 250 000 NOK to the final fundraising pot.

The money was raised through a combination of individual country fundraising and donations from employees, partners, and suppliers. Additionally, for every 1 kilometre travelled by each participant, Belron donated €1.

Our Norwegian virtual “Spirit of Belron” was a great success. In total we did more than 5000 km in cycling, swimming, and running. This year we were a bigger group (61 persons) and all participated in the event. I am very proud of the engagement our Norwegian colleagues showed during Spirit of Belron.

Carlos Brito, Belron’s CEO, said:

“Our annual Spirit of Belron Challenge event is a fantastic way of bringing our global colleagues together, united by our purpose of making a difference with real care.”

“I’ve been blown away by the passion, commitment and energy I have seen over the past few weeks and the way everyone has pulled together to raise this amazing amount of money for Afrika Tikkun.”

Afrika Tikkun helps transform the lives of children and young people in the poorest parts of South Afrika by providing mentoring, schooling facilities, clean and healthy living environments, and career opportunities. Through contributions from the SOBC, Afrika Tikkun has:

• Provided aid to 31,000 children aged two to six, and a further 76,000 children in school aged seven to 18;
• Trained over 21,000 young adults, 10,000 of whom have been placed into work;
• Supported over 83,000 families through its social services;
• Provided over 81,000 primary healthcare interventions;
• Served more than 23 million meals.

Belron is the world’s leading vehicle glass repair, replacement, and recalibration group and operates in 37 countries, across 6 continents. Hurtigruta Carglass is just one of the 12 brands that Belron owns. Belron’s roots are firmly established in South Africa and the business has a long-standing and deep relationship with Afrika Tikkun.

Carole Day, CEO of Afrika Tikkun UK, adds:

“We have been in partnership with Belron for over 20 years. Whether supporting through events like SOBC, helping us promote our work, or through mentorship, the work Belron does is vital in helping us reach our shared goal of helping more disadvantaged young people to create a better future for themselves. We are so grateful to everyone at Belron who takes part in SOBC or any of the fundraising events Belron run – this fundraising will help change the lives of many young people.”

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About Belron

Belron® is the world’s leading vehicle glass repair, replacement and recalibration group. Our key brands include Carglass®, Safelite Autoglass® and Autoglass®. We operate in 37 countries across 6 continents through wholly owned and franchise operations, and also manage vehicle glass and other insurance claims on behalf of insurance customers. Belron is home to around 30,000 employees who delivered 15 million jobs for our customers in 2022, with a focus on service quality generating a very high level of customer satisfaction. More details are at https://www.belron.com/

About Afrika Tikkun

Afrika Tikkun is a non-profit providing education, health, and social services to disadvantaged communities within South Africa, through its five centres across Gauteng and the Western Cape. Their cradle to career 360 degree model provides a holistic approach to the development of young people from early childhood to school leaving age, to when they journey into accessing economic opportunities. Currently assisting over 10,000 children and youth across the country, their primary goal is to create a sustainable future through economic empowerment for the youth of South Africa. The credibility of this cause won the support of the Parton-in-Chief in memoriam, Nelson Mandela. The success of Afrika Tikkun’s cradle to career approach is rooted in partnerships with beneficiaries and their communities, as well as the fundamental alignment and support of civil society organisations, private businesses and government. More details are at www.afrikatikkun.org