October 2008 Breast Cancer Awareness Merchandise Preview

As we get closer to the annual October onslaught of pink ribbon madness, I'm looking forward to resurrecting the "Think Pink Product of the Day" - a feature here on the blog that was very popular in 2006. (In 2007, I didn't get to do the pink links, since I was a little busy with wedding planning & an October honeymoon that included meeting breast cancer survivor Deanna Favre). This year, I'm renaming the feature to the "DAILY PINK LINK", and I will include corporate donation information in as much detail as possible.

In my research to find out which companies will be making positive donations to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF, and other breast cancer related charities) from their profits on breast cancer merchandise, a few items already look like they'll be popular this year with shoppers. Here's a sneak preview:

1. Breast Cancer Awareness Watches
- Everybody's already looking for the GUESS Breast Cancer Watch, designed exclusively for the Susan G. Komen foundation which was popular last year and set to go again for Breast Cancer Awareness Month in 2008.

On the Komen Foundation website, the donation promise from Guess says: From September 1, 2008 through January 31, 2009, GUESS Watches will manufacture and sell the Pink Ribbon watch through department stores and fine jewelry stores nationwide. GUESS Watches will donate $10 for each watch sold. In addition, GUESS Corporate will donate $20 for each watch sold in GUESS stores. A minimum guaranteed donation of $25,000 will be made from the sales of the Pink Ribbon watch.

However, the watch itself is still nowhere to be found - Amazon's page for the GUESS Breast Cancer Watch says currently unavailable, Macy's doesn't have it yet either, and even the online Guess store is empty. (Trust me - there will be an update here when it does become available!)

Until the GUESS watch is available, an alternative breast cancer watch is available from Nautica. Nautica will donate $65,000 from the proceeds to a recognized breast cancer awareness charity. You can buy the Nautica Women's Breast Cancer Awareness Watch on Amazon.


2. Breast Cancer Bracelets
- The pink ribbon rubber wristbands (similar to Lance Armstrong's yellow Livestrong bracelets) are always a winner during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. There are many pink breast cancer bracelets available with different sayings, and the "Find the Cure" one is among the most popular:




This 12 Pack of
Breast Cancer Awareness Bracelets
is less than $10, so it's pretty affordable to give one to all your friends. I got into the habit of wearing two breast cancer awareness rubber bracelets at a time, so that I could pass one on to whomever asked about it. I once heard Lance Armstong did the same thing. You can also order your own custom breast cancer bracelets to fundraise in honor of or on behalf of someone you know who has been affected by breast cancer.

Beyond the pink ribbon rubber bracelets, breast cancer charm bracelets and pink ribbon jewelry are always among the most sought after, and I'll be picking out and featuring the best pieces of breast cancer jewelry I come across.



3. Stand Up 2 Cancer Merchandise
- Since the SU2C telethon on Sept. 5th, the awareness level has been raised. While not breast cancer specific, the total money raised for cancer research is impressive, and breast cancer research will surely benefit. Cafepress is the official place to buySU2C tshirts & merchandise.