Nelsons Sponsors SportsAid
Corporate Social Responsibility
Nelsons sponsors SportsAid to support sporting champions of the future.
Nelsons is providing 20 young talented athletes with financial support, recognition and personal development opportunities through its partnership with SportsAid. Each athlete receives an annual £1,000 award (approximately $1,400) which makes a vital contribution towards training and competition costs, such as travel, accommodation and equipment, as well as giving them a motivational boost.
Claire Ferguson, CEO of Nelsons, explains more about the partnership….
What is the history behind Nelsons?
The Nelsons brand was first born back in 1860 when it opened its London Pharmacy based in Mayfair and it continues to provide the same high quality remedies, advice and expertise today as it did back then. In the 1930s Dr. Edward Bach, a physician and homeopath, who developed the Bach® flower remedies, approached Nelsons to bottle and distribute his increasingly popular remedies. The company was then taken over in the 1970’s by the Wilson family, and it was under their guidance that Nelsons developed its first over-the counter range recognizing the growing demand for these remedies in the 1980’s. By the 1990’s Nelsons was allowed the exclusive use of the plants and acquired the brand equity enabling us to develop and promote the remedies and the growing Rescue® range. Today, Nelsons is a leading supplier of naturally inspired products which include Rescue® and Rescue Plus®, Bach® Original Flower Remedies, and Spatone® Liquid Iron.
How has the company evolved over time?
Obviously over our 150 plus years history times have change. Modern day lifestyles now make more demands on us than ever before. What hasn’t changed, however, is our commitment to put the consumer at the heart of everything we do, which means that we are constantly developing new products to ensure we are as relevant now as back then — providing solutions to support our consumers’ health and emotional wellbeing to live healthier, happier lives. This is borne out by the fact the Rescue® brand is now the global number one emotional wellbeing brand. In 2003 we also acquired Spatone®, a liquid iron supplement, and in 2015 introduced added vitamins into our popular Rescue® brand — just two great examples of solutions which support the day-to-day stresses and strains of our busy modern lifestyles. This philosophy has meant that we are now a globally recognized brand sold in over 70 countries and have around 5.2 million users worldwide.”
Where is Nelsons based, globally?
“The Nelsons headquarters are in Wimbledon with regional offices based in United States, Monaco and Germany and with distributor partnerships worldwide. Our retail pharmacy is still based in London, Mayfair, and we have manufacturing sites based in Wimbledon in UK, and Snowdonia in Wales.
How did the partnership between Nelsons and SportsAid develop?
“As a company we’ve always had a strong commitment towards giving back to the community and the environment, so we were delighted to be supporting SportsAid, which is such a perfect fit. Our core purpose is to support generations to live healthier and happier lives so the tie-up to support the next generation of athletes to reach their potential seemed so natural. For us, whilst we will of course be providing financial support, the Buddy System, where our employees get to meet and learn from the athletes, is a fantastic opportunity and we are looking forward to developing this over the coming years. This also fits so well with our company values. We firmly believe in striving for excellence and being responsible for what you do, so through the Buddy System we can learn a lot from the athletes’ inspirational stories of their drive and determination to achieve their goals, whatever the physical or mental challenge they face.
How satisfying do you find it when hearing about the progress of the athletes supported by Nelsons through SportsAid?
“It’s very rewarding to know that our support is going to help these up-and-coming athletes achieve their ambitions and goals in some small way. You cannot help but have a sense of pride in the fact that our sponsorship is helping potential sporting stars of the future who one day may represent Great Britain on a global platform. Seeing these young people reach their full potential is really key for us. It’s about going after your goals, taking control of your own destiny, optimizing your potential and not giving up. It’s such a great story which we can all learn from, epitomized by these young athletes.
How do you see the partnership with SportsAid moving forward?
“We had a fantastic kick off event where Tim Lawler (SportsAid’s Chief Executive), a couple of young athletes and Paralympic gold medalist, Danny Crates, joined us at our internal conference recently. This helped demonstrate both ends of the spectrum as people could see who we’re going to support, listen to their hopes and dreams, as well as hear from someone who has already achieved their goals. We’ll be introduced to the new crop of athletes we’ll be supporting in March so we’re looking forward to really optimizing the Buddy System then. This will be a great opportunity to follow up with the athletes, see how they are doing on their journey to gold and learn how they remain focused and maintain those levels of determination, whatever the challenge. We’ve also got some other exciting ideas to bring their stories to life as they are so inspirational — it’s a real privilege to be working with them.”
