PRESS RELEASE
TURTLEUNIVERSE.com--- A NEW WOMAN OWNED, COMMUNITY OF INTEREST AND ONLINE STORE LAUNCHES in 2009.
LOCAL SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP NOT AFRAID OF TOUGH ECONOMIC TIMES OR GIVING REVENUE TO COMMUNITY.
Contact: Jody Smith, Managing Director 202-486-3007
February 3, 2008:-EDGEWATER, MD. ---- Doing the Universe Good….One Turtle at a Time is the motto for TurtleUniverse.com, a 100% woman owned small business that is taking the concept of a Community of Interest to a whole new level on their official launch date,February 5, 2009 .
At first glance, the online store and website looks like any other community of interest offering original turtle greeting cards, turtle gifts, collectibles and information about turtles, including things to do and ways to get involved in rescue, nesting and preservation efforts. But then, you notice that irresistible offer. On World Turtle Day, May 23, 2009, the proprietors---a dive master/former county employee, a retired customer service representative and an author/ghostwriter--- have pledged to give 7% of their total sales from TurtleUniverse.com to the community service efforts, projects and causes nominated and voted for by their customers. The project does not have to be for a non-profit or turtle related activity.
While the founders will earmark at least 5 donation gifts to turtle rescue, nesting protection and conservation, ideas submitted by customers in the Community of Interest, many other community service nominations are expected and also encouraged for efforts unrelated to turtles. “To qualify your cause or desire has to help more than one person or turtle, and be legitimate, of course. Projects are nominated and voted for by TurtleUniverse.com customers or organizations invited to participate by the owners. The deadline for nominations is May 13, 2009, which is 10 days before World Turtle Day,” says Jennifer McNatt, President of www.TurtleUniverse.com
“Ideas submitted that meet these requirements will be posted on our website and offered in-kind promotional support between now and voting day. The longer your idea is available for Community of Interest members to see, the greater its exposure and likelihood of getting votes. Qualifying community service ideas and projects will be posted as they come in. Visitors can get 2 free votes, one for coming to the site and the other for joining the Community of Interest mailing list located on this website.Customers will be given an additional vote for each dollar they spend on TurtleUniverse.com and will be encouraged to come back and use these votes to support their local community and beyond. Anyone who spends $10 can nominate a cause or project. The idea to let customers to “vote for their cause” came to us when we saw how interested people were in voting in this year’s presidential election. People wanted to have a say in the results, and we thought that customers would enjoy and embrace that opportunity at TurtleUniverse.com.
The owners have pledged to give 7% of their sales away every year on World Turtle Day and hope that the members of their community of interest will pass this concept and idea of “Doing the Universe Good… One Turtle at a Time,” to their friends and co-workers at least as much or more as the chain emails that circulate. In addition to the original turtle greeting cards offered for sale, the catch phrase—“Do a Universe of good…One Turtle at a Time”, which was coined by McNatt, is featured on several custom products including a “go-green” reusable grocery bag, martini glasses, travel mug, plush turtle sporting a bandana, a memo pad and coozie to “enable members to pass the idea on and engage others who want to find a way to support their local community in a tough economic time.” Why start a business now? Getting grants and financial assistance at the local level is often an insurmountable challenge for community groups without the resources to put together large grant proposals. It is becoming more difficult as many businesses tighten their belt, now. The TurtleUniverse.com business model took that barrier away according to Jody Smith, Managing Director. “The idea is a hybrid of sorts between the thank you points and customer loyalty reward programs and the concept behind Oprah’s Big Give, a program where ordinary people choose places to make a difference at the local level and then pass it on,” Smith says smiling.
This venture was literally born on the back of a napkin when the three founders who all live in Anne Arundel County went to dinner at a new local restaurant (Shockers) after kayaking on the South River in Edgewater, MD. The three had not known each other long but were a kindred spirit as it turns out. Jennifer McNatt, who had recently been downsized from her job at Anne Arundel County Department of Recreational and Parks and is working as a food and beverage server locally, was looking for a way to be involved in the community in a way that supported her interest as a dive master. Jody Smith, a new author/ghostwriter with a 20+ years in community relations and government contracting had recently launched Context Engineering to assist both writers and social entrepreneurs in bringing their ideas to life when she and Jen started talking about designing and selling cards with Jenn’s turtle, “Crunch,” to help fund other projects. It wasn’t long into the dinner conversation before Jenn, Jody and friend, Colleen Gleason, a Washington Gas call center retiree, who also served as their Snuggles the Clown community relations mascot, realized that they shared an interest in turtles and doing good in the local community and beyond. 45 days later those notes on a napkin became turtleuniverse.com and Crunch was joined by “T.W”, “Legend” and “Scuba” all of whom are turtles with a story involving www.TurtleUniverse.com Community of Interest members.
According to the 3 founders, “Friends were supportive but also wondered at our courage in starting a new business in these tough times. In fact, some gave us a look like “Legend,” a giant land tortoise photographed in the Galapagos this summer by a friend of Smith’s. “Our answer to that is that now more than ever, people need a laugh and spot of encouragement. If we can do that, and help each other at the same time, why not? The Galapagos tortoises are purported to have no fear. I guess you could say the same about us in this New Year of hope and history making,” remarked owner, Colleen Gleason.
“Social entrepreneurship' is the work of a social entrepreneur. A social entrepreneur is someone who recognizes a social problem and uses entrepreneurial principles to organize, create, and manage a venture to make social change. Whereas a business entrepreneur typically measures performance in profit and return, a social entrepreneur assesses success in terms of the impact s/he has on society. While social entrepreneurs often work through nonprofits and citizen groups, many work in the private and governmental sectors. The main aim of a social enterprise is to further its social and environmental goals. This need not be incompatible with making a profit - but social enterprises are often non-profits. Social enterprises are for ‘more-than-profit’ (a term coined by a BBC journalist)” [source: Wikipedia contributors, "Social entrepreneurship," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Social_entrepreneurship&oldid=253661700 (accessed November 25, 2008)].