As successful entrepreneurs, Gunther and Ingrid Schroff wanted to give something back to society and therefore established the Schroff Foundations from their private assets at the end of 1984. Since its establishment, the Schroff Stiftung für soziale Zwecke has supported various social projects in Germany and abroad. One of these projects was with an organization in Thiruvananthapuram (southern India), which initially focused on financing a mobile diabetes centre and arranging sponsorships for children in extreme poverty.

The values conveyed by her family, wanting to give something back to society, the passion for Asia and the fact that other people also want to support her activities, encouraged Susanne Schroff, the daughter of the founders, to become active in Switzerland (main place of residance) with her own foundation. The SANNI Foundation, which she founded in December 2010, significantly elaborated the activities in Thiruvananthapuram and extended them to Myanmar.

Finally, in 2021, the Schroff für soziale Zwecke was renamed to SANNI Foundation in order to fully utilize the foundation’s potential and thus help even more people in need.

Both foundations are closely linked due to Susanne Schroff, the respective chairwoman of the foundation board. This bond is largely strengthened by the fact that the 3rd generation of the Schroff family is now also involved in both foundations.