July’s Monthly Marketing Meetup was hosted by the For Purpose SIG in collaboration with Contagion. At the event, we explored how purpose-led partnerships can fuel commercial results, drive employee engagement and deliver real community impact. L’Oréal, Suncorp, and Turners highlighted how meaningful collaboration, grounded in shared values can create lasting change across Aotearoa. Read more to dive deep into the insights from the meetup.
L’Oréal’s La Roche-Posay brand partnered with Melanoma New Zealand to address a major public health issue through aligned values and a shared commitment to education, prevention, and community outreach. Formalised in 2023, the partnership has delivered thousands of free skin checks, targeted high-risk communities, and brought awareness campaigns to life through creative, non-commercial storytelling.
Campaigns like “Your Skin Remembers” demonstrate how purpose-led marketing can shift behaviour and elevate public understanding—earning both trust and reach through empathy, not product promotion.
Lessons Learned
Partnerships rooted in shared purpose can elevate brand credibility and social impact. When campaigns prioritise education and service over sales, they resonate more deeply. Consumers respond to real-world action—and purpose-driven work has the power to build trust, drive awareness, and create lasting cultural change.
Suncorp’s Spirit to Cure campaign aims to fundraise for cancer research and patient support while strengthening team connection. It's a purpose-led initiative aligned with the brand’s mission to show up for people in life’s critical moments.
Spirit to Cure is an employee led event combining fitness, fundraising and fun. Suncorp’s own business partners sign up with a sponsorship package and also take part. Internal newsletters, volunteer leave, project champions, charity keynotes and dollar-matching all support deep staff engagement. Word of mouth remains their strongest channel.
More than $1 million has been raised over three years with another series of event in the planning stages for 2025. For LBC, it’s not just about the funds – it is an opportunity to take existing community peer-to-peer fundraising events and turn them into unique activations across the country to bring about a strong corporate partnership with Suncorp NZ.
Lessons Learned
Embed purpose into company culture to drive genuine engagement – campaigns succeed when employees feel personally connected and supported to take part. Internal champions, leadership backing and meaningful incentives like volunteer leave create momentum. Rooted in organisational values these events with energy and engagement promote partnership at every level.
Turners’ transformation journey included a focus on employee engagement. Their partnership with Make-A-Wish NZ gives local branches a chance to fundraise and deliver wishes to local tamariki in meaningful ways.
Each branch leads their own wish delivery – personalised, authentic and community-based. Since 2022, they’ve granted 19 wishes, aiming for around 10 each year.
The work isn’t highly publicised – promotion happens mainly through internal storytelling and the CEO’s comms. But the impact shows up clearly in staff surveys and culture.
Turners staff feel part of the magic. As Sean Wiggans shared, giving back on company time has deepened team pride and connection. “To be part of that is really powerful.”
Local, hands-on initiatives foster genuine employee connection and pride. Impact doesn’t need to be loud – internal storytelling and leadership support can drive deep engagement. Trusting staff to give back on work time builds purpose into culture.
These partnerships prove that when corporates and for purpose organisations work hand-in-hand with shared intent, the impact reaches far beyond revenue. Whether it’s preventing disease, funding research, or granting life-changing wishes, purpose-driven marketing has the power to make a difference that lasts.