Small items, big impact: Bio Laboratories’ generous donations keep kindness flowing
A Good Thing is an online platform that allows businesses to give things away to their local charities. Less to landfill, more to a good cause! The case study below is an example of the wonderful impact that can be made through these matches.
Donor: Bio Laboratories
Location: Cheshire
What was donated?
500+ tubes of toothpaste
685 jars of sunblock
1,600+ of lipbalms
Sector: branded merchandise
Charities that benefitted:
Springhill Hospice
Counselling & Family Centre
Manchester Central Foodbank
Little Green Sock Project
Creative Living Centre
Bolton Hospice
Home-Start Salford, Trafford & Wigan
The Cheshire-based branded merchandise company Bio Laboratories has once again shown that even the smallest items can make a huge difference! As a long-time paying supporter of A Good Thing, the company recently donated an impressive bundle of self-care goodies, including over 500 mini tubes of toothpaste, 685 jars of sunblock, 1,620 lipbalms (a mixture of watermelon and strawberry flavour) and 18 chapsticks.
For anyone keeping count, that’s over 2,800 smiles waiting to happen! Sue Mannion, from Bio Laboratories, shared:
“We have been using A Good Thing since March 2024, and we became a Supporter in July 2024. We find the process very easy and there is always someone to help if we have a query. The concept is amazing and the whole team at Bio Labs enjoys it when we load a new item on, to stop items going into landfill and support different charities.”
Bio Laboratories has now listed 75 different offers on the platform – everything from bubble bath and toothpaste to plasters and nail varnish. These items are helping ensure that nothing useful goes to waste.
Sue added: “We keep a log of all the charities we have supported so we can ensure we cover a wide range of different charities. It’s always very special when items are collected, because we have an opportunity to meet the charity representative.”
From sustainable business practices to heartfelt generosity, Bio Laboratories continues to show what it means to care for both people and the planet.
Helping hands across the north-west
These donations were shared across a group of brilliant charities in the north-west of England, each one finding its own unique way to put the items to good use!
In Rochdale, Springhill Hospice received the mini toothpastes. Jo Ali explained how the donations helped families staying at the hospice:
“Some mini toiletries have been used for our inpatients and families who find themselves staying in family rooms while their loved ones are with us. These are so helpful in making the transition into the hospice as easy as possible for patients and their loved ones.”
Springhill Hospice has previously put donations from Bio Laboratories to good use at a fundraising lunch that raised over £21,000 where Bio Labs’ nail varnish sets added a touch of luxury to the goody bags at the event.
Meanwhile, in Altrincham, the Counselling & Family Centre used the donated mini sunblock jars at its 50th anniversary open day. Alison Hambleton said:
“This was our first successful use of the A Good Thing service – it was so easy and quick to apply for the offer. We collected a few hundred mini sunblock creams and pocket-sized mirrors: as it was a super-hot day, no burnt noses for our service users and guests!”
The Manchester Central Foodbank also received some of the sunblock jars to share with its community.
Over in Trafford, the Little Green Sock Project received hundreds of purple lip balms. It’s a local charity supporting families facing domestic abuse, poverty and displacement. Catherine Dalbertanson told us:
“Treats such as lip balms are a luxury that can’t be afforded. We add them to our toiletry packs for children and women to add a little bit of luxury.”
Catherine added that Bio Laboratories has become something of a regular supporter: “We’ve received a couple of things from Bio Labs now. We use the items to make up toiletry packs for older children and mums to give that extra bit of love in our bundles.”
In Prestwich, the Creative Living Centre which supports people experiencing mental health challenges, received the watermelon lip balms. These are a small but meaningful way to promote self-care among its service users.
And in Bolton, the Bolton Hospice brightened the days of staff, patients, and volunteers alike with the strawberry lip balms. Adrian Vickers explained:
“We used them as gifts to our nursing staff, patients, and also to our volunteers and supporters who give their time freely to support our charity.”
Finally, Home-Start Salford, Trafford & Wigan received the chapsticks. The charity used them both as thoughtful gifts for supported families and as thank-you tokens for those who ran the Great Manchester Run to raise funds for the charity. Ann-Marie McDonald shared:
“The website was quick and easy to use. Bio Laboratories’ donations have reached thousands of people – offering comfort, care and a little bit of sunshine with each donation.
Every item diverted from landfill has found a new purpose, and in turn this has helped hospices, food banks, community centres and family support charities continue to deliver their ever-more important work. As Sue and the team at Bio Laboratories show, when a business takes sustainability to heart, the ripple effects reach far and wide.