J.Crew Factory visit to St. Jude inspires employees, deepens bond with mission

When J.Crew Factory employees look back on their March visit to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®, many of their most cherished moments will likely be during the “Spring Soiree” they hosted on campus for patients and their families.

As Cate McCarthy volunteered at the Soiree’s face-painting station, the West Coast regional manager marveled at the laughs and smiles she saw on patients and families enjoying a sun-drenched early-spring afternoon.

“For my first time here, it’s educational but even moreso it’s inspiring,” McCarthy said. “It’s amazing to see the children letting loose and it’s especially moving to see a lot of little kids making friends.”

Since becoming a partner in 2023, J.Crew Factory has quickly emerged as a significant corporate supporter of St. Jude, with $3.5 million in fundraising in 2025 pushing total contributions to over $6 million[JM1]  – earning the company the 2026 St. Jude Corporate Partner of the Year Award.

The company’s growing embrace of the St. Jude mission added energy to stations set up across the lawn at the center of the hospital campus, from photo stations to face painting to arts and crafts.

At the “Swag Station,” Laura Sacoco, manager of a store in Maine, passed out hats and sunglasses specially designed by J. Crew Factory, which includes merchandise created in partnership with St. Jude for the annual St. Jude Thanks and Giving campaign.

Sacoco’s store and another in the New England region, managed by Christine Ulm, combined to raise nearly $50,000 in 2025.

“We both have young children at home, and there is a passion about giving back to families going through this,” Sacoco said. “It’s definitely emotional to be here. Being a parent, you can’t imagine going through this with your own kids. Seeing kids enjoying themselves for a few hours is incredible. It’s something we’ll take back to the stores.”

For Caleb, a St. Jude patient father and schoolteacher, the event offered his young daughter, Erma, a welcome diversion.

“We were here for labs and she asked what was happening outside,” Caleb said. “When I told her it was a fun spring event, she asked if it meant face painting and cotton candy and art.”

All of that, and more.

For veteran retail leader Jody Gietl, GM and Executive Vice President of J.Crew Factory, the experience reinforced the decision to embrace St. Jude. Earlier in his career, with another clothing retailer, Gietl saw how supporting St. Jude can increase engagement and deepen loyalty.

As J.Crew Factory expands and adds new stores across the country, the partnership offers a unifying purpose to employees – and helps St. Jude expand its lifesaving mission.

“St. Jude is woven into our culture now at J.Crew Factory,” Gietl said. “It is really a part of who we are as a company. It means so much to be able to recognize our store Associates who put in so much effort to educate our customers about St. Jude and encourage donations. And also some of the people behind the scenes, who take on extra projects to help frontline teams make it happen.”

Like Gietl, Jerry Baker was introduced to the St. Jude mission at another company, first visiting St. Jude in 2005. When he returned 20 years later as a J.Crew Factory regional director the growth on campus was striking. “Before it was like a small town and now it’s like a big city.”

Earlier in the day, Baker’s guide on a tour of St. Jude had pointed to the newest building projects around campus, including a new clinical center and new advanced research center, as evidence of what company supporters make possible.

“We always want to have construction happening,” said Bess Atkinson, who was a St. Jude cancer patient in the 1990s and now works on campus. “The construction means we can help more patients and do more research. That’s why we always need more donations.”

Also on the tour with Atkinson was Patsy Smith, the manager for a store in Louisiana. She looked forward to sharing what she learned about how donations help St. Jude bring hope and healing to patients and families.

Smith described how building rapport with J.Crew Factory customers can lead to small moments of generosity that, combined, add up to make a significant impact.

“The human touch makes such a difference,” Smith said.

Smith brought her outgoing energy to the Spring Soiree’s karaoke station, where she led dances and encouraged kids to add their voices to the festive atmosphere.

Smith and Tenesha Lain, the Gulf Coast district manager, also find it meaningful to see patient families at the Baton Rouge St. Jude Walk. As a national sponsor, J.Crew Factory teams participate in St. Jude events across the country.

“I know companies support other charities, but to see it and feel it like we do with St. Jude, that’s different,” Lain said. “I was so excited to hear we would be partnering with St. Jude. It makes you proud.”

That was a common sentiment among the J.Crew Factory volunteers, many of them on the visit because they found ways to inspire more giving at stores.

“It’s an additional plus to working for J.Crew Factory, to be connected to this,” said Christine Richards, whose store in Colorado led the country with a 70% rate of donations per transaction. “I’ve seen it progress, seen the passion grow, and it’s part of creating a feel-good culture at J. Crew Factory. It’s just going to get bigger.”

At one of the Soiree’s most visited stations, “Build a Bouquet,” families could make arrangements of cloth flowers. Jennifer Mehr, senior vice president of J.Crew Factory’s marketing and ecommerce, was touched when a boy told her he planned to take flowers to nurses.

  "You come thinking you're going to feel good about what we've accomplished,”  Mehr said.  “ You leave feeling like we haven't done nearly enough — in the best possible way."