About us
Galen and Hilary WestonThe Galen and Hilary Weston Foundation (previously The Selfridges Group Foundation) funds research and support that will transform the landscape of treatment and care for those affected by neurodegenerative diseases of ageing.
Our history
W. Galen Weston was a Canadian business leader and philanthropist with strong ties to the UK and Ireland. A passionate and brilliant retailer, he was responsible for the transformation of Selfridges and its sister companies, Brown Thomas and Arnotts in Ireland, as well as Holt Renfrew in Canada.
W Galen WestonHis family roots were in the food business in Canada, where he is best known for turning around Loblaw Companies in the 1970s and 1980s and turning it into the country's leading retailer.
Following his own dementia diagnosis, Weston immediately set out to fund research into the neurodegenerative diseases of ageing, and founded The Weston Brain Institute as part of the Weston Family Foundation in Canada.
In 2016, he asked his daughter, Alannah, then Deputy Chair of Selfridges Group, to lead what was then called the Selfridges Group Foundation (now The Galen and Hilary Weston Foundation). For the past eight years, the foundation has established itself as an instrumental supporter of research on neurodegenerative diseases of ageing, with a particular emphasis on novel biomarkers, which are key to the search for treatments and eventually a cure for these devastating diseases.
As a result of the family’s direct experience of caring for a person with dementia, they recognise the enormous need for practical support to be made available to all those who are directly and indirectly affected by these diseases. Recently, the foundation has adopted this as its second philanthropic pillar.
Our approach
Image credit: Dementia Research Centre, Institute of Neurology, UCLIn philanthropy, as in business, Mr Weston believed in identifying the most talented people and giving them the resources to make a genuine difference – an ethos that Mrs Weston continues to uphold.
We seek out and support:
- targeted research that advances the development of biomarkers and diagnostics for neurodegenerative diseases of ageing; and
- the development of projects that support and empower people affected by these diseases and their carers.
An innovation ecosystem
Image credit: Dementia Research Centre, Institute of Neurology, UCLWe have a proud history of being a convening power, bringing together pioneers to work collaboratively. Being part of the wider philanthropic network of Weston foundations enables us to offer more than funding to the projects we support.
Our grant-making efforts combine world-class business and scientific expertise to create the right conditions for accelerating progress. Thanks in part to our relationship with the Weston family foundations in Canada, we provide access to leaders in neuroscience and regularly connect researchers working in related spheres.
Our people
Our multi-disciplinary, global team brings together expertise in neuroscience, business, biotech and philanthropy.