In-kind donations from companies
Donate your excess inventory to winter survival kits
Engage and Change takes new surplus goods from companies in bulk and packs them into winter survival kits for people experiencing homelessness in the GTA. Leftover event swag, promotional products, warehouse and 3PL overstock and returns that were never used all qualify if the item is on the kit list below, and the first step is our interest form, before anything ships.
The kits go to more than 200 front-line agencies across the GTA1.
What fits
What fits a kit, sorted by where surplus comes from.
Each kit holds 30+ new items in a sport bag or knapsack1. Plenty of them are things companies already order with a logo on, and items with your logo are welcome.
From event and promotional surplus
- Winter hats (toques)
- Winter scarves
- Winter gloves
- Socks
- Hand warmers
- Backpacks, sport bags and knapsacks
- Reusable water bottles
- Insulated cups
- Pens and notepads
- Playing cards
- Stress balls
- Lip balm
- Hand sanitizer
From warehouse and 3PL overstock
- Sleeping bags
- Towels and face cloths
- Toothbrushes and toothpaste
- Soap, body wash, shampoo and conditioner
- Deodorant
- Shave cream and razors
- Hair brushes and combs
- Body and hand lotion
- Facial cleansing cloths, hand wipes and tissues
- Polysporin and bandages
- Bottled water
- Activity books (crossword or sudoku)
- Sealed snacks
Returns count when they are new, which means never worn and never used. If the boxes have been opened, say so on the form and we will tell you whether we can take them.
Leave out
What we can't take.
- Anything used or worn, including returns that came back used. Every item in a kit is new, for hygiene and for dignity1.
- Homemade kits. Company teams pack the kits on the day, so send items loose and in bulk.
- Small lots. The January pack makes 3,500 kits in one day, and every one of them gets a sleeping bag1, so items come in bulk and there is a minimum quantity. Put your counts on the form and we will tell you whether they meet it.
- Swag that is off the list, like T-shirts, hoodies, ceramic mugs and tech accessories. Ask first, and please don't ship anything off the list until we say yes.
If most of what you have is off the list, a liquidator or a resale program will probably do more with it than we can. And if you would like to help with the kits anyway, $50 helps build one.
How it works
From your form to a kit.
Count it.
Item, quantity, sizes for gloves and socks, and the expiry or best-before date on anything that has one.
Send the interest form.
Tick "Donating kit items" on the Get Involved form. In the "Anything else we should know?" box, list your counts and where the stock is sitting (city, and how many cartons or pallets).
Jody replies.
Jody Steinhauer, our founder, handles item donations herself. She confirms what fits the kit list and sets up the delivery.
One bulk delivery.
Everything comes in one delivery, at a time we agree on together. Please don't send or drop off items before a time is confirmed.
Your stock goes into kits.
On Saturday, January 16, 2027, company teams pack the kits on assembly lines. They are sorted by agency request and loaded out to more than 200 front-line agencies across the GTA, including shelters and outreach programs1.
Every item has to be in hand before January 161, so send the form now even if the stock won't be free until December. Donated items that arrive in time are items we don't have to buy at wholesale, which leaves more of the money people give for the rest of the kit.
Where it ends up
Since 1999, nearly 95,000 kits.
Front-line agencies across the GTA ask for up to 30,000 kits a year, and nearly 95,000 have gone out since 19991. Agencies apply by December 1. They hand the kits to people they already work with through shelters, Out of the Cold programs and outreach programs, so the toques from your trade show booth go out through people who know who needs one.
Send your counts
Tell us what you have.
One form, with the item and the count. Jody will tell you whether it fits a kit and how the delivery works.
Running a staff drive instead of clearing stock? How to run a donation drive at work
Questions people ask
The short answers.
Can a business donate excess inventory to charity in Canada?
Yes, when the charity can use what you have. Engage and Change takes new surplus in bulk when it matches the kit list: winter wear, backpacks, sleeping bags, hygiene supplies, first-aid basics and a few small extras. Send the item and the count on our interest form before you ship.
Can we donate leftover promotional products or swag?
Yes, if the item is on the kit list. Toques, scarves, gloves, socks, backpacks, water bottles, insulated cups, pens, notepads, playing cards, stress balls, lip balm and hand sanitizer all go into kits, logo and all. T-shirts, hoodies and mugs are not on the list, so ask before you send those.
Do you take customer returns or overstock from a 3PL?
New returns and unopened overstock, yes, in bulk. Anything used or worn, no. If boxes have been opened, tell us on the form and we will say whether we can use them.
Is there a minimum quantity?
Yes. Items come in bulk only. Put the item and the count on the form and we will tell you whether it meets the minimum.
Will we get a tax receipt for donated inventory?
Ask on the form before you ship, and we will tell you. For reference, the Canada Revenue Agency says a registered charity can issue a receipt to a business for a gift out of inventory at its market value, and that there is no gift, and so no receipt, when the business gets a material benefit such as publicity in return2.
Can I drop off a few items myself?
Not as an individual. Engage and Change takes item donations from companies, schools and faith groups in bulk, by arranged delivery only. On your own, you can give toward a kit or start a fundraiser on CanadaHelps.
Sources
- Engage and Change. Project Winter Survival kit list, For Companies and Get Involved pages, engageandchange.org, as of October 2026; totals (nearly 95,000 kits since 1999, up to 30,000 agency requests a year) as confirmed by the board, October 11, 2026. Project Winter Survival.
- Canada Revenue Agency, Gifts out of inventory (CPC-018). Released March 29, 2000. canada.ca CPC-018.
Sources checked October 11, 2026.