BESTSELLER Foundation is a Danish commercial foundation established in 2015. It is funded by BESTSELLER, the family-owned fashion company, but operates as a separate legal entity from both BESTSELLER A/S and HEARTLAND A/S.
The foundation's current strategy focuses on expanding economic opportunity for women, particularly their ability to create, work, and own. Its work is organized around three areas:
Creative industries, including fashion, craft, music, and the arts
Future of work, including reskilling, childcare, and workforce participation
Ownership, including assets, businesses, income, and financial decision-making
BESTSELLER Foundation uses both donations and impact investments and describes itself as a long-term, evergreen investor. Over its first 10 years, it reports making more than 25 impact investments and 100 donations across 25 countries.
Its geographic focus includes South Asia, especially Bangladesh, as well as Sub-Saharan Africa and Europe. Current and recent partnerships have supported women artisans, small businesses, workforce participation, water resilience, and recovery efforts following major disruptions.
The foundation's legal purpose is broader than its current public strategy. Its statutory mandate includes humanitarian work, poverty reduction, entrepreneurship, agriculture, and nature conservation. Earlier investment strategies also placed significant emphasis on circular economy and climate technology.
Financial Snapshot
At the end of 2024, the foundation reported:
- DKK 109.7 million in total assets
- DKK 85.9 million in equity
- DKK 88.4 million in long-term investments
- Approximately DKK 20 million distributed during the year
- Approximately DKK 18 million invested during the year
BESTSELLER's board also approved a preliminary DKK 250 million commitment for the foundation's 2024 to 2029 strategy. This represents committed future support, not capital already deployed.
The foundation does not publish a standard grant size, investment check range, or formal scored application process. Potential partners can contact the team through its website.
BESTSELLER Foundation's current investment thesis centers on a simple idea: talent is widespread, but economic opportunity is not.
The foundation backs founders, businesses, and organizations that expand women's ability to earn income, participate in the workforce, build enterprises, and own assets. It views women's economic independence as a driver of broader household and community wellbeing.
Capital is provided through a mix of grants, equity investments, and debt, with an emphasis on patient, long-term partnerships rather than a traditional open application cycle.
Its investment history has evolved over time. Earlier portfolios focused heavily on circular economy and climate technology, including seed and growth-stage companies. More recently, the mandate has broadened toward businesses and organizations with clear social or environmental impact, particularly those creating economic opportunity.
The foundation does not publish fixed investment stages, minimum or maximum check sizes, or a formal selection scorecard. Its historical investments provide useful context, but prospective partners should rely on the foundation's current website and strategy rather than older third-party grant listings.
Photo credit: BESTSELLER Foundation / bestseller.org official photograph of artisan hand embroidery
Funder structure
Danish commercial foundation, BESTSELLER FOUNDATION fond, CVR 36942576, established in 2015 and based in Aarhus. It is funded by the BESTSELLER fashion company and is legally separate from BESTSELLER A/S and HEARTLAND A/S. It both donates and makes equity and loan investments. The public site lists Anders Holch Povlsen as chair. The 2024 report identifies Tine Fisker Henriksen on the executive board and an average of four employees that year.
Focus geography
Registered in Denmark, with a current public focus on South Asia, especially Bangladesh, plus Sub-Saharan Africa and Europe. The site also describes an India water-stress initiative and a Ghana textile-waste recovery grant. The statutory object covers Denmark and abroad. Grants have not had a hard country list. Investment geography has shifted by strategy period, including a wind-down of China activities after 2017.
Focus sectors
The 2026 public pillars are women's creative livelihoods, future-of-work supports such as reskilling and childcare, and ownership of income, assets, and enterprises. Fashion, craft, and artisan enterprise are explicit. Earlier strategies covered food value chains, renewable energy, nature, waste and circular economy, and then climate technology. Those earlier themes explain the existing portfolio. They are not a complete description of the current public strategy.
Eligibility requirements
The live site invites partners and organizations aligned with women's economic opportunity. Historical practice favored businesses and projects with traction, a proof of concept, and a route to social or environmental return, using equity, shares, and loans, with grants for specified charitable projects. No current page publishes a universal eligibility checklist, a minimum revenue test, or a guarantee that nonprofits, students, or BESTSELLER suppliers qualify.
Decision process
There is no published open-call calendar or scoring rubric. Inquiries go through the contact form. The foundation describes itself as a long-term partner that co-creates with organizations already working on access to work, income, and ownership. Board strategy and distribution policy are reviewed under Danish commercial-foundation governance. A contact-form submission is not an approved grant or investment.
Impact approach
The stated ambition is lasting economic independence for women, on the view that family wellbeing follows. Tools are donations, patient equity and debt, and partnerships such as the BRAC handicraft collaboration in Bangladesh. Ten-year totals of 25-plus investments and 100-plus donations across 25 countries are organization-reported activity counts. They are not independently evaluated beneficiary outcomes.
Reporting expectations
The foundation files an audited Danish annual report. The 2024 report, adopted 21 March 2025, was audited by EY and prepared under the Danish Financial Statements Act. Equity investments are carried at cost less impairment, so the investment line is not a fair-value AUM mark. No universal grantee report template was published. Project grants are described historically as contractually specified.
Geographic restrictions
Denmark is the domicile, not an exclusive service area. Current narrative focus is Bangladesh and wider South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Europe, with examples in India and Ghana. The 2024 report said 2025 charitable contributions would not be geographically limited, while additional climate-venture investing was expected in Sub-Saharan Africa. Sanctions, charitable purpose, and partner fit still constrain access.
Alternatives and limitations
Cheque size is unpublished, so no minimum or maximum is stored. The DKK 250 million figure is a preliminary corporate commitment to the 2024–2029 strategy, not money already granted. Equity of DKK 85.9 million at the end of 2024 is foundation capital and retained resources, not a venture-fund AUM. Requests to the fashion company, its brands, or HEARTLAND are not applications to this foundation.
Focus areas
Locations
