MCLEAN, Va. – Hilton, in collaboration with Mars Petcare US, Inc., the world’s largest pet care company, and global nonprofit Greater Good Charities, announces it will donate more than 140,000 pounds of retired towels, bathmats, washcloths and other terry products from its hotel properties to local animal shelters across the U.S. and Canada.
This collaboration is part of Hilton’s enterprise-wide refresh of towels and terry products across its 22 different trading brands. With towel quality among the top guest complaints, Hilton is taking steps to improve the guest experience by replacing its current towels with higher quality, softer and more durable terry products for guests to enjoy.
As part of that replacement process, the hospitality giant sought a way to repurpose the retired terry products. Through the ongoing partnership with Mars Petcare, teams at Hilton Supply Management, Hilton’s global procurement arm, learned of a critical need for towels in animal shelters. Towels and other terry products play a vital role in animal hygiene, ensure the comfort of animals, facilitate the care of newborn animals including puppies and kittens and support rescue missions for abused animals.
By collaborating with Mars Petcare and Greater Good Charities, Hilton Supply Management is facilitating the connection between Hilton-branded properties and local animal shelters to ensure retired Hilton towels, bathmats, washcloths and other terry products are provided to shelter animals in need. As animal shelters across the country continue to face overpopulation and resource constraints, donations are needed more than ever.
As a result of this innovative collaboration, more than 1,000 Hilton-branded properties will donate more than 100,000 towels and other terry products to hundreds of animal shelters, with the potential to benefit up to 70,000 shelter animals housed in shelters across the U.S. and Canada.
These donations will extend the life of retired Hilton terry products, while also supporting the communities where Hilton operates and reducing the chance of retired products going to landfill.
“At Hilton, we're constantly seeking new and innovative ways to create a great stay for our guests while supporting the communities where we all live, work and travel,” said Anu Saxena, president & global head, Hilton Supply Management. “This program is a testament to the ingenuity of our team members and the result of our continued belief that travel can be a powerful force for good. In partnership with Mars Petcare and Greater Good Charities, we will continue to find ways to positively impact the places that we all call home, build tomorrow's sustainable travel experience and, at the same time, create a more hospitable world for people, pets and planet.”
There are more than 1,200 hotels and 500 shelters across the U.S. and Canada enrolled in the program with additional hotels expected to come on board through the end of the year. With a dual focus on waste reduction and positive community impact, the program is inspired by Hilton’s Travel with Purpose environment, social and governance (ESG) strategy, which includes a goal to reduce waste to landfill by 50 percent by 2030.
“Greater Good Charities is excited to collaborate with Hilton and Mars Petcare to help keep shelter pets across the U.S. and Canada healthy and comfortable by providing towels and terry products,” said Liz Baker, CEO of Greater Good Charities. “This program not only helps shelter pets and the people who care for them, but reusing these items helps the environment by giving them a new purpose. It’s truly a win-win.”
The initiative also marks the latest extension of Hilton’s ongoing partnership with Mars Petcare, which provides pet-focused programming and benefits to guests in pet-friendly properties throughout the U.S. and Canada. Across its portfolio of 22 world-class brands, Hilton offers nine pet-friendly brands – including Hampton by Hilton, Embassy Suites by Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn, Tru by Hilton, Canopy by Hilton, Homewood Suites by Hilton, Home2 Suites by Hilton, Spark by Hilton and LivSmart Studios by Hilton – at more than 5,800 pet-friendly locations globally. Team members at these properties regularly provide information about local pet-friendly resources, including local dog parks, nearby 24-hour vets, pet stores and pet-friendly restaurants in the area. Additionally, many hotels offer pet treats at the front desk, provide pet bowls for guest use, and supply waste bags.
To learn more about Hilton’s pet-friendly offerings through its partnership with Mars Petcare, please visit stories.hilton.com. To learn more about Travel with Purpose, please visit esg.hilton.com.
About Hilton
Hilton (NYSE: HLT) is a leading global hospitality company with a portfolio of 23 world-class brands comprising more than 7,600 properties and nearly 1.2 million rooms, in 126 countries and territories. Dedicated to fulfilling its founding vision to fill the earth with the light and warmth of hospitality, Hilton has welcomed over 3 billion guests in its more than 100-year history, was named the No. 1 World’s Best Workplace by Great Place to Work and Fortune and has been recognized as a global leader on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices for seven consecutive years. Hilton has introduced industry-leading technology enhancements to improve the guest experience, including Digital Key Share, automated complimentary room upgrades and the ability to book confirmed connecting rooms. Through the award-winning guest loyalty program Hilton Honors, the nearly 190 million Hilton Honors members who book directly with Hilton can earn Points for hotel stays and experiences money can't buy. With the free Hilton Honors app, guests can book their stay, select their room, check in, unlock their door with a Digital Key and check out, all from their smartphone. Visit stories.hilton.com for more information, and connect with Hilton on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.
About Travel with Purpose
Travel with Purpose is Hilton’s Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) strategy to advance responsible travel and tourism globally. Through Travel with Purpose, we seek to create positive environmental and social impact across our operations, supply chain and communities. We track, analyze and report the impact of Hilton’s portfolio of hotels through LightStay, our award-winning ESG performance measurement and management system. Travel with Purpose capitalizes on Hilton’s global scale to serve as an engine of opportunity in the communities where we operate and pave the way to a net-zero future. Our strategy aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more about Travel with Purpose at https://esg.hilton.com/.
About Greater Good Charities
Greater Good Charities is a 501(c)(3) global nonprofit organization that works to help people, pets, and the planet by mobilizing in response to need and amplifying the good. Greater Good Charities, with a Four-Star rating on Charity Navigator and a Platinum Seal on GuideStar, has invested more than $650 million in impact, including cash grants, in-kind supplies, and programmatic support to charitable partners in 121 countries since 2007. To learn more about how Greater Good Charities is amplifying the good across the globe, please visit greatergood.org or follow Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube and TikTok.
About Mars Inc.
Mars, Incorporated is driven by the belief that the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today. As a global, family-owned business, Mars is transforming, innovating, and evolving to make a positive impact on the world. Across our diverse and expanding portfolio of quality snacking, food, and pet care products and services, we employ 140,000+ dedicated Associates. With more than $47 billion in annual sales, we produce some of the world’s best-loved brands including Ben’s Original™, CESAR®, Cocoavia®, DOVE®, EXTRA®, KIND®, M&M’s®, SNICKERS®, PEDIGREE®, ROYAL CANIN®, and WHISKAS®. We are creating A Better World for Pets through our global network of pet hospitals and diagnostic services – including AniCura, BANFIELD™, BLUEPEARL™, Linnaeus and VCA™ – using cutting edge technology to develop breakthrough programs in genetic health screening and DNA testing.
For more information about Mars, please visit www.mars.com. Join us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.