crinkle toy
Since December 2019, Little Dutch is a proud ambassador of the Friends of Sophia Foundation. What started with a donation of a wooden scooter for the charity auction of the foundation grew out to a beautiful contribution to the improved care for babies and children and the Erasmus MC-Sophia Chrildren’s hospital.
About the Friends of Sophia Foundation
In most cases a pregnancy ends with the birth of a healthy child. Unfortunately, this cannot be taken for granted. On average 1 in 20 children is born with a disease or abnormality. And about 1,400 children a year die in the period around birth.
The Friends of Sophia Foundation raises funds for extra research into treatment methods. The foundation supports projects that are designed to make a hospital stay as pleasant as possible – both for children and for their parents.
With the donation of Little Dutch the foundation will fund the Mother & Child Centre of the Erasmus MC-Sophia Children’s Hospital. This centre holds all disciplines to provide complex care and to create an optimal environment for the development of the sick child, from the pregnancy wish to the first four weeks after birth.
This year the center will focus on the treatment of children in the womb. This enables the fetal care department to start diagnoses and treatment before a child is even born. It will give the babies a better chance at life and avoid premature delivery.
How it started
“During the preparations for the 2018 Sophia Lichtjesdiner (Diner of Lights), the Friends of the Sophia Foundation reached out to us,’’ says Rinke van der Helm, founder and owner of Little Dutch. “We were asked to donate a wooden scooter to the charity auction which was to be held at the Lichtjesdiner Gala. From that moment on, things developed quickly.
‘’I was very moved by the things I saw when I got a tour around the hospital. I felt like: ‘This is where children are fighting for their lives’. It made a deep impression on me and I knew: Little Dutch is going to support the Erasmus MC – Sophia Children’s Hospital. That’s for sure.”
Initiatives by Little Dutch
The Sophia Doll
In 2019, when we became an ambassadour of the Friends of Sophia Hospital Foundation, we designed a very special cuddly doll: Sophia. Based on the hospital’s mascot Sophia, a girl in yellow dotted pyjamas. For each Sophia doll sold we donate an amount to the Friends of Sophia Foundation. The Sophia doll is available to buy from the Friends of Sophia webshop, as well as in many baby and children’s shops in both the Netherlands and abroad.
Buy Sophia to support this charity
In 2020 Little Dutch presented the Sophia doll at the biggest pregnancy event in the Netherlands with a dedicated stand for just Sophia and the Friends of Sophia Foundation. The stand was fully donated by multiple partners and the Dutch artist and co-ambassador Davina Michelle.
Toy Donations
During 2020 we decided to show our support to the little patients of the Sophia hospital by donating lots of cuddle cloths from the popular Ocean collection. At this same day we donated the wooden workbench and wooden kitchen to the 'Mother and child centre' to decorate the familyrooms.
For the hospital garden we brought balance bikes.
World Prematurity Day 2020
17 November is World Prematurity Day. This special day is a key moment to raise awareness for preterm birth and its consequences. For Little Dutch an inspiration to do something special for the Neonatal Care Unit of the Mother & Child Centre of the Erasmus MC-Sophia Chrildren’s hospital. With a lot of love we had more than 700 swaddles made for Kangaroo Mother Care at the unit. This is skin-to-skin contact between parent and a preterm baby wrapped in a soft and comfortable swaddle. The swaddles are also used in the cribs as blankets, together with baby caps, to keep a baby warm.
Sophia's Christmas campaign
In December Little Dutch made a last effort to raise the highest possible donation amount for the year 2020 for the Friends of the Sophia Foundation. Our goals was to raise €50.000,- to fully donate to the Sophia Foundation.
Curious what amount we've reached?
Read the full story ►
Sophia's Super Monkey
In February 2021 we introduced Sophia's Super Monkey. The soft cuddly toy Super Monkey is Sophia's best friend and accompanies her on every adventure. He gives the biggest hugs to all superheroes who need it the most!
With the purchase of this cuddly toy you support the Friends of the Sophia Foundation.
Buy Sophia's SuperMonkey and support this charity
We are proud of all the initiatives that we have been able to realize so far for the Friends of the Sophia Foundation and invite you to join us. This can be done by buying the Sophia doll, Sophia's Super Monkey or directly by making a donation via this link.
Little Dutch has great initiatives planned for 2022 to continue our support to this good cause. Stay tuned!
World Prematurity Day 2021
17 November is World Prematurity Day. For several years, this has been a great occasion for Little Dutch to put preterm babies and their parents in the Neonatology ward in the spotlight.
In 2021, Little Dutch once more visited the Mother and Child Centre in the Erasmus MC-Sophia Children's Hospital. This time, we brought two baskets full of delightfully soft blankets. The blankets, which were specially made for the Neonatology ward, can be used in the cradle or incubator, or during kangaroo care. Kangaroo care involves skin-to-skin contact between parent and the preterm baby, who is bundled in a soft, comfortable blanket or swaddle. On top of that, we also brought Little Goose cuddle cloths that the Foundation could hand out to the little patients in the ward.
As always, it was great to be able to do our bit for the comfort of the little patients and their parents in the Neonatology ward.
Hurray! Little Dutch hands a record donation to the Friends of Sophia Foundation!
Since 2019, Little Dutch has been a proud ambassador of the Friends of Sophia Foundation.
The sale of the Sophia doll, specifically designed for this foundation, is an integral part of the ambassadorship. Part of the proceeds of these sales is donated to the Friends of Sophia Foundation.
In 2021, Little Dutch once more launched various campaigns to promote sales of the Sophia plushie doll. They were a great success! This year, our efforts resulted in a record donation of no less than € 79,608.36!
Hurray! We've sold 100,000 Sophia dolls
In April, it finally happened: the one-hundred-thousandth Little Dutch Sophia Doll was shipped from our distribution centre. It was an unforgettable moment that Little Dutch would like to commemorate with the Friends of Sophia Foundation. After all, it was thanks to the joint efforts of retailers, consumers, partners and fans that such an enormous amount was collected for this charity.
To celebrate this amazing moment, we awarded the Friends of Sophia Foundation a golden Sophia Doll. A remarkable version of the doll that will be given a place of honour at the Foundation.
Wow! A record amount during the 8th Sophia Light Dinner!
How amazing! In 2022, the sale of the Sophia doll yielded a record amount of €81,232.35! During the 8th Sophia Light Dinner on Saturday, December 9, 2023, Little Dutch presented this beautiful check to the Friends of Sophia Foundation.
With this contribution, we support numerous important research and various projects that make the lives of sick children more pleasant. Thank you for all your support and encouragement! We continue to strive for wonder and great family happiness for all children!
Little Dutch is constantly developing when it comes to sustainability. We do so by choosing sustainable alternatives and responsible innovations more often. We are taking organisation-wide steps towards a sustainable future.
Our products meet European regulations and are produced without child labour and in a socially responsible manner in the Netherlands, India, Indonesia, Turkey and China, among others.
We constantly consider the sustainability of our product and material choices with our suppliers. In collaboration with our suppliers, we aim for sustainable products with respect for people and the environment.
For example, we have realised the following steps so far:
- Oeko-TEX® certification
This means that, during the production of our textile, steps are taken to reduce the use of harmful substances in order to minimise the health and environmental impact of the products. - Sustainable wooden toys
Our wooden toys are made of sustainable wood and are painted using water-based paints. - Clothing
Our organic garment collection is made of 90% organic cotton and yarn. The jacron label on the clothes is made of banana leaves. The paper hangtags on the products are made of recycled paper. - Lamps
Our hanging lamps are made of recyclable cardboard and textile using environmentally friendly glue. On top of that, the ink is Greenguard certified, resulting in low chemicals emissions. - Wallpaper
The ink residue produced during the printing process of our wallpaper is recycled and reused. On top of that, the press uses a ‘toner’ rather than water in the ink. - Paint
Our wall paint is water based and our paint cans are recyclable. - Rugs
The rugs are hand-woven using eco-friendly, 100% organic cotton. - Backpacks
A single backpack is made of ten recycled PET bottles.
Packaging
In addition to making our products more sustainable, we are trying to reduce the amount of packaging we use. By now, we have made the following sustainable choices:
- Removed plastic handles from our boxes with big toy boxes.
- Replaced our boxes with plastic windows with closed boxes.
- The plastic hygiene bags of our plushies have been replaced with recycled plastic.
- Plastic packaging material replaced by ‘paper wrap’ where possible.
Social commitment
In addition to our efforts in the area of sustainability, we also show social commitment. This does not just entail the improvement and monitoring of the labour conditions in the countries where our products are manufactured, but also giving back to the society that we actively sell our products to.
For example, we have worked with the Erasmus MC Sophia Foundation in Rotterdam (NL). Our collaboration has led to many donations and great results over the past few years. If you are curious about our collaboration with this foundation, you can read more about the Erasmus MC Sophia Foundation here.
On top of that Zorgkwekerij Bloei in Pijnacker, an organisation that employs people with a distance to the labour market, performs specific activities on our behalf. The factory in India that produces our rugs has a special social plan for employees and the local surroundings. On top of that, they sponsor a local school.
