Lebanon has absorbed more than 2 million Syrian refugees. More than half are children, drastically increasing the number of children beggars. There is no social infrastructure or government system to help the refugee population. Additionally, gangs exploited some street children, using the money they were given to buy illicit items. Unsure of where their money was going, the Lebanese stopped giving. This left the majority of street children who beg to survive, without basic necessities. To enable the Lebanese to give responsibly, we created an alternate currency to hand to street children named the Good Note and worth about $1. Unlike bank notes, it can only be spent on good things at Bou Khalil supermarkets and its affiliated pharmacy (with restrictions on alcohol and tobacco. Medicine can only be purchased with a doctor's prescription).

The name in Arabic is “Alf Kheir” (1000 blessings), a common Arabic expression to signify that the world is a good place. The 1000 (or Alf) is used to hint to the 1000 Lebanese note (the smallest denomination of Lebanese currency, typically given to beggars). Similarly, the design references the Lebanese 1000-pound note, however additional purple tones give out warmth. Design elements at the center reflect the streets, surrounded by the necessities that street children can buy with the note such as food, personal hygiene items and medicine. The note is sealed with the pledge “In this note we trust to spread good change”, as the note aims to change the giving habits of the Lebanese by establishing trust and to give good change to street children. The note is printed on foldable yet cost effective material, so that like currency it can be folded and put in pockets.

Designing an alternate currency and bringing it to life, resonated with the Lebanese by effectively demonstrating the problem of giving money to street children while simultaneously providing a functional and usable solution. The Good Note was covered by local media and international media. In less than one month, public interest generated $4.2 million in earned media and PR and reached an estimated 20million social media users. This buzz led local business, such as pubs, cafes, gyms and jewelers among others, to pour in to partner with the initiative, selling Good Notes at their venues. The interest was so high that we are now ready for a reprint of the Good Note. With more than 25 million Lebanese pounds worth of Good Notes circulating around the country one month into the initiative, we got the Lebanese to give again and turned a supermarket chain into a social service network.

Our strategy was to target all different levels of society with a communication campaign. In-store communication placed in all the supermarket branches targeted Bou Khalil shoppers. Outdoor and print communication targeted the public at large, raising awareness on giving responsibly. An online film depicted the country losing faith in children, calling for change. On social media we engaged online users with stories from the streets, via the Good Note Instagram account. On-ground, we educated the children on the note and where to spend it. To maximize reach, we put Bou Khalil supermarket on wheels by creating the Good Truck. We involved influencers and opinion leaders who spread the initiative across the world. As the Good Note initiative grew, partners began pouring in to sell the Good Note and they hung the in-store posters in their shops.

Lebanon has absorbed more than 2 million Syrian refugees. More than half are children, drastically increasing the number of children begging on the streets. The country lacks the social infrastructure and governance capabilities to meet the needs of its own citizens. As a result, there are no formal channels to help the refugee population.

Thus, as a leading brand since 1935, Bou Khalil supermarkets, which pledges 'generations of care' as its brand promise, felt compelled to step in on ground to re-establish trust between the Lebanese public and street children, aiming to enable the Lebanese to help the devastating situation on-ground and give street children access to desperately needed necessities such as food, personal hygiene items, clothing and medicine.

Bou Khalil needed to create a permanent and sustainable solution.