Four Seasons to raise breast cancer awareness via month-long culinary initiative

Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts will show support for National Breast Cancer Awareness Month this October with a "Think Pink" campaign that spurs its chefs and mixologists to create pink cocktails, teas and desserts to benefit breast cancer charities.

To maximize the awareness generated by each property, Four Seasons is inviting its guests to share photos of Think Pink offerings. The Think Pink campaign follows the launch of the hotel chain's culinary Web site and quickly positions the brand's passion for food to align with an admirable cause.

“As a company, we have always taken an active role in supporting awareness for cancer research through our support of broader cancer research campaigns as well as local efforts," said Guy Rigby, vice president of food & beverage, Americas at Four Seasons, Toronto.

“Building off the success of last year’s Drink Pink initiative, we have decided to expand this year’s campaign to engage our chefs and mixologists personalities allowing them to fuse their personal style and current food and beverage trends to create innovative pink dishes and cocktails offered throughout October," he said

"The Think Pink campaign not only benefits a great cause but also inspires culinary talent to think out-of-the-box with these seasonal initiatives."

Taste, then donate
Four Seasons recently consolidated and illuminated the culinary activities of its many properties with a food Web site that forms a part of the brand’s revamped digital presence.

Taste by Four Seasons informs guests about events occurring collectively by the brand or by select properties and provides fans with cooking and dietary suggestions. Dedicating a Web site solely to the brand’s passion for food will likely appeal to food enthusiasts and entice prospective guests looking for a reliable dining experience (see story).

Multiple Four Seasons properties will be participating in the month-long campaign, each assisting a different charity and creating unique items.

Four Seasons Think Pink

The Pink Hope cocktail at Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica is a tequila-based elixir made with coconut cream, fresh lemon and beet juice giving it a vibrant pink color. A $2 cut of each cocktail is donated to local cancer research foundation Fundacion Anna Ross.

The Four Seasons Hotel New York's Moët and Chandon: The Fruitful Cause cocktail will benefit the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

Also, the Four Seasons Hotel Boston Crimson Berry Iced Tea will garner proceeds for the Massachusetts General Hospital's Breast Cancer Center.

Four Seasons Think Pink

Ten percent of sales generated by the Four Seasons Hotel Seattle's Sweet Pink Rose dessert will go to Susan G. Komen Pugent Sound.

Four Seasons Resort Lana’i at Manele Bay, HI, will donate 20 percent of proceeds gathered from its trio of Think Pink desserts to John Schaumburg at the Lana'i Cancer Foundation.

In October all Think Pink recipes will be posted for fans and guests to check out.

The brand invites its followers and guests to post Think Pink images using hashtags #FSTaste and #FSThinkPink on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Four Seasons Twitter feed

Committed campaigns

Charity campaigns that go beyond one-time appearances and isolated donations generally have a greater effect. Hotels brands are well-suited to embark on extended projects due to their embedded nature in communities.

For instance, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts began a month-long charity initiative this month that tackles issues relevant to its properties’ surrounding areas.

The “Community Connections Month” invites Fairmont colleagues and hotel guests to work with local organizations to volunteer at shelters, improve elderly facilities, spread knowledge of bee preservation and other charitable activities. Making a sweeping effort to aid community outreach projects will likely appeal to luxury travelers who search for brands engaged in authentic philanthropy (see story).

Brand-wide campaigns should provide space for individual properties to express individuality.

"It’s absolutely a wise decision for Four Seasons to structure the initiative in such a way for two primary reasons," said Taylor Rains, account executive at Rawle Murdy Associates, Charleston, SC.

"First, it is consistent with how the brand tends to govern its properties," he said. "Each has an identity uniquely its own.

"Secondly, allowing each property to tailor the dimensions of its contribution independently makes the initiative all the more personal. Guests and employees benefit from knowing that they are making an impact that will be felt in the local community."

Final take
Joe McCarthy, editorial assistant on Luxury Daily, New York