The 5th Shopping Festival, organized by the Empathy Social Responsibility and Education Association in order to provide support for educational projects and scholarship funds, was held at Teymur Continental Hotel on December 7-8.
The shopping festival started with the ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Fatma Şahin, Sanko Holding Honorary President Abdülkadir Konukoğlu, Sanko Holding CEO Zeki Konukoğlu, Gaziantep Chamber of Industry Chairman Adil Konukoğlu and Mrs. Jülide Konukoğlu, Gaziantep Chamber of Industry Assembly President Mustafa Topçuoğlu and Mrs. Dilek Topçuoğlu, DAP Holding CEO Ziya Yılmaz and Mrs. Filiz Yılmaz, İst-Life Construction CEO Naci Topçuoğlu, Sanki Holding Board member Cengiz Konukoğlu, Empathy Social Responsibility and Education Association Zeynep Konukoğlu, Füsun Koçer, Empathy Social Responsibility and Education Association Board and members.
We were pleased to host our beloved Şehitkamil Empathy Primary School students at the opening ceremony. Our students, esteemed members of the protocol, the Board and members of Empathy, participating companies and guests in the hall stood for a minute of silence in memory of the great leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, his brothers in arms and holy martyrs and sang the National Anthem.
At the end of the ceremony, Gaziantep Metropolitan Mayor Fatma Şahin said, “I would like to thank Empathy who worked tiredlessly from the very beginning of its foundation. Their efforts create awareness and contribute to the branding of Gaziantep. We see the light, energy, excitement, and self-confidence in the eyes of our children studying at Empathy Primary School. This reveals what we are doing is right, the city needs to touch children through social responsibility projects, the city needs education. With founding schools and supporting education, Empathy is no longer an entity in Gaziantep. It is rapidly advancing towards becoming a brand in Türkiye and internationally and becoming a strong civil society.” Gaziantep Chamber of Industry Chairman Adil Konukoğlu said, “I wholeheartedly support this Empathy event. They have already introduced two schools to our city with the income they raised here. I would like to thank all the members of the association and the board for organizing this festival. I am pleased that local products are sold here, that producers in Gaziantep have the opportunity to introduce themselves. Handicrafts are one of the cornerstones of our city and events such as this one are very helpful for showcasing them all. I am already looking forward to next year’s festival. I wish good luck to all participating companies who will be donating part of their earnings to the schools built by Empathy. I hope they sell all their products.”
Empathy Social Responsibility and Education Association Chairwoman Zeynep Konukoğlu stated that they attach great importance to social responsibility projects and said, “We are following in the footsteps of Metropolitan Mayor Fatma Şahin. We are 30 women in the forefront but we are backed by many unseen hearts. Hopefully, this will grow exponentially and we will contribute to many more educational projects. The participating companies here are highly satisfied. “We are here as guests, and when compared with Istanbul, Gaziantep hosts us dearly,” they say. Such words make us very proud. Let it always continue like this, let us launch many more prosperous projects. As long as all our supporters, especially Fatma Şahin, are behind us, there is nothing we can not do.”
The shopping festival, held on December 7-8, 2017, offered memorable moments to our visitors with a program enriched with interviews and workshops this year. Among our speakers who voluntarily participated in our festival and shared valuable information with our guests are Barış Çunguroğlu, Founder of Seam Academy, with ‘Wellness and Healthy Life’, Muhittin Kaan Kocatepe, founder of Fit in Time, with ‘Healthy Life and Sports’, Fashion Editor Mert Aslan with ‘Fashion and Style’, Complementary Medicine Specialist and Brennan Healing Science Instructor Sintia Mazon with ‘What Our Body Tells Us’, Painter Elif Karadayı with ‘Painting and Art’ and the popular screen face Gül Gölge Saygı with ‘About Women’. In addition, our guests had a pleasant time by designing door decorations and table decorations for New Year’s tables with Florist Bige Sualp.
Valuable brands from many provinces of Türkiye who provided their support for education by participating in the shopping festival brought by Empathy along with main sponsor Dap Yapı Holding and event sponsor By Mehmet Organization, are Sponza, Fideko Furniture Design, AYN DESIGN, S9 Boutique, Yatsan, ADL, Üsküdar Antik, Ottica Optik, C&M Dream House, Ahmet Erarslan, Sisters Home Boutique, Antep Basket, Allure, Beymen, Edwards&Brooks Brothers, Team Saçkolik, GEO Global Training Organization, Glam by Burcu, Hathi – Sinem Güven, Calori Food, La Merv, Love Your Body, Atelier Mini, Madam Seta Silk, Nenuphar Atelier, Oxo Investment – London, Poetique Home, Princess Design, Perspective Rabia Kurşun, Sadekar Jewelry, Sega Jewels, Selin Ecer, Sorbet, Stephenia Gift & Chololate, Swarovski, The RUF, Things, Voel – Seyra İncioğlu, Yeşim Diamond, ZK Dreams, Zukka Book & Coffee, Pinemine, Seluna, Garage Organics – Ahmet Çoban, Ayşe Burcu Kaya, Forty 3 Design, Glowing Diaries, Handmade Deniz Samlı, Yaya Boutigue, Hurom, Nispetiye Dent and Fit In Time İbrahimli Branch.
The 5th Empathy Shopping Festival, the income of which is to be spent on new education projects, as has always been every year, attracted huge interest and support from our education volunteer friends from Gaziantep, Istanbul, İskenderun, Antakya and many other provinces of Türkiye and ended with fond memories.