Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Nearly 2 million P&G products have been redistributed to people living in poverty in Belgium over the past five years – through a partnership with Goods to Give and a network of 560 local organizations. Corporate Communications Director Benelux Raquel Smolders travels with P&G colleague Inge De Backer to see how product donations reach the people who need them most – from the Goods to Give warehouse to Deelpunt in Wetteren, a social grocery store where Ariel, Always, Gillette Venus and other essentials become part of daily life.
Featuring:
• Raquel Smolders, Corporate Communications Director Benelux – P&G
• Inge De Backer, Corporate Communications Director Europe – P&G
• Kasper Knops, Partnership Manager – Goods to Give
• Luc De Mey, Volunteer – Deelpunt Wetteren
• Candy, Consumer and Volunteer – Deelpunt Wetteren
Basic hygiene is not a given for everyone. Laundry detergent, personal care, household essentials – these are daily needs that strain budgets stretched thin by financial hardship. P&G's answer in Belgium is neither charity in the abstract nor a one-off campaign. It is a long-term partnership with Goods to Give, the non-profit that has been fighting poverty and social exclusion across the country since 2013.
On the road to the Goods to Give warehouse, Raquel Smolders sketches the two sides of P&G's community work. Disaster response puts household and personal care products into the hands of people affected by crisis. Local programs, on the other hand, rely on long-term partners – like in Belgium, with Goods to Give.
At the warehouse, Kasper Knops, Partnership Manager at Goods to Give, takes Inge through the numbers. Nearly 2 million P&G products have been redistributed over the past five years. In 2025 alone, Goods to Give's full donor network reached 300,000 people across Belgium. From here, goods flow outward to 560 partner organizations. Impact is created through collaboration across the value chain.
Deelpunt Wetteren is one of those partners. Volunteer Luc De Mey explains that it is not a food bank. It is a social grocery store built on three pillars – food, maintenance and hygiene, and breaking social isolation through a cafeteria where conversation matters as much as the meal. Because donated products arrive at a low cost, they can be offered at a low price, and that matters. Paying for a detergent, however modest the amount, preserves the dignity of choosing for yourself. Candy knows that journey from both sides. She came in as a customer, then stayed on as a volunteer. Hygiene matters, she says, and knowing you can afford it matters just as much.
What you'll learn:
• How P&G and Goods to Give partner to combat poverty in Belgium
• Why basic hygiene products are a critical daily need for households in financial hardship
• How nearly 2 million P&G products have reached people in need over five years
• How a social grocery store like Deelpunt Wetteren operates on food, hygiene, and social connection and helps people re-find dignity
• How consumers and volunteers come together to sustain the model
Chapters:
00:00 Why Basic Hygiene Matters for People in Poverty
00:28 Meet Raquel Smolders: P&G's Community Work in Belgium
01:12 P&G's Partnership with Goods to Give on Product Donations
02:05 Inside Goods to Give: Fighting Poverty in Belgium Since 2013
02:46 The Numbers: 2 Million Products and 300,000 People Reached
03:47 Visiting Deelpunt Wetteren: A Social Grocery Store
04:00 Luc De Mey on Deelpunt's Three Pillars: Food, Hygiene, Connection
05:35 From Consumer to Volunteer: Candy's Story
#PGCommunityImpact #StoriesOnTheMove #GoodsToGive #CommunityPartnership
Nearly 2 million P&G products have been redistributed to people living in poverty in Belgium over the past five years – through a partnership with Goods to Give and a network of 560 local organizations. Corporate Communications Director Benelux Raquel Smolders travels with P&G colleague Inge De Backer to see how product donations reach the people who need them most – from the Goods to Give warehouse to Deelpunt in Wetteren, a social grocery store where Ariel, Always, Gillette Venus and other essentials become part of daily life.
Featuring:
• Raquel Smolders, Corporate Communications Director Benelux – P&G
• Inge De Backer, Corporate Communications Director Europe – P&G
• Kasper Knops, Partnership Manager – Goods to Give
• Luc De Mey, Volunteer – Deelpunt Wetteren
• Candy, Consumer and Volunteer – Deelpunt Wetteren
Basic hygiene is not a given for everyone. Laundry detergent, personal care, household essentials – these are daily needs that strain budgets stretched thin by financial hardship. P&G's answer in Belgium is neither charity in the abstract nor a one-off campaign. It is a long-term partnership with Goods to Give, the non-profit that has been fighting poverty and social exclusion across the country since 2013.
On the road to the Goods to Give warehouse, Raquel Smolders sketches the two sides of P&G's community work. Disaster response puts household and personal care products into the hands of people affected by crisis. Local programs, on the other hand, rely on long-term partners – like in Belgium, with Goods to Give.
At the warehouse, Kasper Knops, Partnership Manager at Goods to Give, takes Inge through the numbers. Nearly 2 million P&G products have been redistributed over the past five years. In 2025 alone, Goods to Give's full donor network reached 300,000 people across Belgium. From here, goods flow outward to 560 partner organizations. Impact is created through collaboration across the value chain.
Deelpunt Wetteren is one of those partners. Volunteer Luc De Mey explains that it is not a food bank. It is a social grocery store built on three pillars – food, maintenance and hygiene, and breaking social isolation through a cafeteria where conversation matters as much as the meal. Because donated products arrive at a low cost, they can be offered at a low price, and that matters. Paying for a detergent, however modest the amount, preserves the dignity of choosing for yourself. Candy knows that journey from both sides. She came in as a customer, then stayed on as a volunteer. Hygiene matters, she says, and knowing you can afford it matters just as much.
What you'll learn:
• How P&G and Goods to Give partner to combat poverty in Belgium
• Why basic hygiene products are a critical daily need for households in financial hardship
• How nearly 2 million P&G products have reached people in need over five years
• How a social grocery store like Deelpunt Wetteren operates on food, hygiene, and social connection and helps people re-find dignity
• How consumers and volunteers come together to sustain the model
Chapters:
00:00 Why Basic Hygiene Matters for People in Poverty
00:28 Meet Raquel Smolders: P&G's Community Work in Belgium
01:12 P&G's Partnership with Goods to Give on Product Donations
02:05 Inside Goods to Give: Fighting Poverty in Belgium Since 2013
02:46 The Numbers: 2 Million Products and 300,000 People Reached
03:47 Visiting Deelpunt Wetteren: A Social Grocery Store
04:00 Luc De Mey on Deelpunt's Three Pillars: Food, Hygiene, Connection
05:35 From Consumer to Volunteer: Candy's Story
#PGCommunityImpact #StoriesOnTheMove #GoodsToGive #CommunityPartnership
