Gift Lounge at the 2011 Kids' Choice Awards to Benefit Japan
This weekend the orange carpet will be lined with Katy Perry-loving children while they cheer on the nominees of 2011 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards. Working behind the scenes is Gavin Keilly, founder of a gifting company called GBK. On March 31st and April 1st from 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM, GBK, along with Tiger Beat and Bop, will host a luxury gift lounge for the award nominees and presenters at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills. Proceeds from the event will go to the American Red Cross to help relief efforts in Japan.
Gavin Keilly started the nonprofit gifting suite for movie premieres and awards shows in 200o. “I wanted to help others, but I did not want to be a martyr in the process,” Keilly told Mediabistro. GBK is a social venture that donates 20% of its profits to charity. According to Reilly, the events have raised anywhere from $500,000 to three or four million dollars for charities such as City of Hope and the Make a Wish Foundation.
The company originally focused on bringing high-profile celebrities to charity events. To give the celebrities an incentive to come back, Keilly sent them home with thank-you gift bags that were worth between $40,000 and $50,000. When Ozzy Osbourne took a watch Keilly had given him and put it in his mouth, the entrepreneur instantly saw the potential the gifts had for product placement.
Today, the company sets up gift lounges where celebrities walk around, choose their gifts, and pose for pictures. The gifts have to be interesting and they are usually worth at least $100, said Keilly, “because let’s face it – no one wants to pose with a water bottle.” At this particular gift lounge, celebrities can walk away with a one week stay in the Caribbean from Caribbean Living Magazine, a certificate for a Glitter Tattoo Party by Glimmer Body Art and a slew of other gifts, which they will carry home in one of Nahui Ollin’s signature candy wrapper handbags made from up to 4,000 recycled candy wrappers.
GBK partners with magazines like BOP and Tiger Beat to guarantee coverage for its clients while providing the magazine’s readers with lots of celebrity photos, product giveaways and charitable warm fuzzies. Members of the American Red Cross will also be on hand to give information on how to help.
