Supply Shack, a social enterprise based in Dorset, England is re-distributing profits to good causes and is also helping other do the same.
The company—which sells business supplies, printed stationary, signs and banners, point-of-sale material and branded merchandise—will be re-distributing the profits the business makes to a chosen cause at the end of the financial year. The community projects and charities that the Supply Shack will support are chosen by the business’s customers. Every year, the business invites its customers to vote for shortlisted charities on the Supply Shack’s Facebook page.
This year, the company will be supporting Life Education Wessex, a non-profit organization that specializes in providing high quality health and drug prevention education to children in the South West of England. In the past, the company has partnered with a number or other charities including Diverse Abilities Plus, The Butterfly Foundation, Hannah house and Crumbs.
“Supply Shack’s primary objective is to drive social change whose surpluses are principally reinvested for that purpose in the community, rather than being driven by the need to maximise profit for shareholders and owners,” states the Supply Shack website.
Des Day and Caroline Pope, the co-directors of the business who are also partners in their personal lives, merged their individual areas of expertise to create the business. Caroline has 14 years’ experience in the charity sector as Director of Fundraising, while Des has a background in sales and managements. “There was a great synergy between what Caroline’s background and experience was in terms of non-profit and the charity sector and with myself being in the commercial business field so we’ve gelled/merged both of them together to deliver Supply Shack,” said Managing Director Des Day.
In addition to donating profits to charity, Supply Shack is also developing apprenticeship schemes that offer less privileged individuals the opportunity to get on the employment ladder, rehabilitation programs for disadvantaged adults (particularly ex-offenders) and employment and training opportunities.
As reported by Positive News, the business hopes to eventually become an umbrella brand for a host of small businesses “We thought we’d create various corporate divisions which would be My Gift Shack, Design Shack, Print Shack, Office Shack and Sign Shack and then we’re going to no doubt build on more shacks and employ more staff. We are currently talking with other businesses to bring them on board with us, they’ll have certain skill sets they can bring and add value to the company as well and certain types of equipment which will lend massive value to where the business is going. The important thing for us from a commercial point of view is to scale the business and the bigger we get the more sustainable we can become which means the more we can give back,” Des explains.
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