JAMMERBUGT: When you rent a summer house, you probably don't think much about where the money actually ends up.

Yes, the owner of the house naturally gets their share of the pie, but the profit at the rental agency also goes somewhere. And if the holiday is booked through nordjyske Sol og Strand, most of it goes into the coffers of the charitable foundation, which has been the main shareholder in the company since 2019.

“Fonden Sol og Strand by Margit og Kjeld” is named after the founders of the summer house company, who the year before last donated the majority of their life’s work – to now distribute part of the profit each year to charitable purposes.

– It’s wonderful to think that the money that comes from what we have created does good, says Margit Andersen, who started Sol og Strand back in 1979 together with her husband.

They have been offered several times to sell to private equity funds just like several of their competitors, but have said no each time.

Money – or coins, as Kjeld Andersen consistently says – they do not need more of.

– We have enough, so we would rather give the future profits to those in need, explains Margit.

From local to global

The first distribution from the foundation took place in December 2020 – where 10 humanitarian organizations were selected with a special focus on what Margit and Kjeld Andersen dreamed of when they transferred ownership of Sol og Strand Feriehusudlejning A/S to the foundation in 2019.

The ten selected organizations ranged widely from the local Skovsgård Hotel to various associations within psychiatry and the well-being of children and young people to the global Doctors Without Borders. Each of the ten received 100,000 kroner.

From 2023, the plan is for donations to increase, but for the first three years, there is a million to distribute each year.

This year, they have chosen to ask Sol og Strand's Danish and foreign holiday guests in 2021, the owners of the summer houses rented through Sol og Strand, as well as the company's employees about which areas they would suggest the foundation consider for support.

– How on earth do you decide year after year who should receive the millions? We think it is reasonable and proper to ask those who have created the profit, explains Kjeld.

Although the couple has always had enough to do with their business, they have prioritized traveling and experiencing new places, cultures, and people – and besides bringing good ideas back home to Sol og Strand, the travels have only given them even more desire to help.

– We have traveled to over 100 countries and we have only met friendly people, says Kjeld, who is immediately supported by his wife.

– If you behave properly, have a positive mindset, and respect the culture where you are, you will only encounter kindness in the world, says Margit.

Hoping for even greater surplus
Even if one does not find joy in helping others for one's own sake, they believe that humanitarian work makes sense from a broader perspective.

– If you spend a little money to help where there is need, it is a good way to combat wars and other nuisances, believes Kjeld.

It is the hope of the northern Jutland millionaires that both the company and the foundation will not only continue to exist long after they are gone but will also keep growing larger.

– If the colleagues at Sol og Strand do it properly – even when we are no longer here – then hopefully we have laid a brick for something sensible, says Kjeld with a smile.

He may soon be turning 80 and has officially retired, but he finds it hard to let go of thoughts about the company's growth.

– If more houses come, more tenants, and thus a larger surplus, there will be even more money to distribute, even when we are no longer here.

Fonden Sol og Strand by Margit og Kjeld was open for applications in September. Holiday guests, homeowners, and employees at Sol og Strand were invited to participate in the surveys during the same period.

Now the foundation's board is processing the applications with inspiration from the surveys combined with their own ideas and assessments, before the final distribution from the foundation takes place in December.

From Nordjyske Stiftstidende