8 Boss Babes Giving Back with Their Business

Hey, babes! Get ready for some kindness. Today we have insight from 8 fab women entrepreneurs about how they give back in their businesses. Philanthropy can make your business stronger because being involved in the community & building your brand around a purpose that’s more than just sales is something special that will resonate with potential clients. The word ‘Philanthropy’ might be conjuring images of fancy galas and big sponsorship dollars, but honestly there are so many approachable ways to give back. Once you find a non-profit with a mission you’re passionate about, you can explore the many ways that you can contribute. We promise there are unique ways that are the perfect for your business that either aren’t obvious from looking at their website or you hadn’t thought of before! 

Take some inspo from these ladies! We would absolutely love if you found a non-profit whose mission called to your soul. Feel free to share in the comments how you plan to give back this year. Thanks for lending your heart to a worthy cause & stay boss. xx

-G

Crystina Castiglione | The Messy Painter // IG

“I currently partner with different non-profit organizations offering a 50/50 split with my watercolor workshops, or donating artwork for auctions to help raise money. I’ve partnered with TPA Lady Project, with Pinellas County School District (not a non profit, but it benefits specific schools), and Family Promise. My goal in the workshops I teach is always to empower and boost confidence in women and men of all ages through the arts. So many people feel they “aren’t creative” which is simply not true; I aim to help break down the notion that we all need to be perfectionists in order to be good at something, and that being creative doesn’t mean you have to be naturally talented - but simply willing to learn something new and not fear making mistakes.”

St. Petersburg, FL

Heather S. Saunders | Ameriprise Financial

“Our office supports several non-profits, some of which are on an individual basis, and some are group efforts on the business-level. As a business, one local non-profit we support is The Spring of Tampa Bay. We do gift baskets for the women in the shelter annually on International Women’s Day, and we invite a handful of clients to come in and assemble those baskets with us. In May, we also invited our local clients to a “Day of Service” at The Spring’s thrift shop, and last year, we did a professional clothing drive to benefit The Spring, which we may repeat this year.  We also do annual group activities with Humane Society of Tampa Bay as well as the Pet Pal Animal Shelter of Pinellas. We try to incorporate clients and prospective clients into our philanthropy, and also invite them to share their favorite non-profits with us, so we can try to support them as well. We struggled at first with how much we wanted to “advertise” our philanthropic efforts, but have gotten a really positive response from clients when we share on social media. They enjoy seeing that we are committed to the community.”

Tampa, FL

Jai Lopa | Wolf & Rabbit Marketing // IG

“We have developed a great relationship with the Lions Eye Institute! We volunteer our services for event promotion, live coverage and other event assistance. We have also volunteered with Tampa Zoo at Lowry Park’s fundraising events, Children’s Cancer Center: Wine Women & Shoes, Dress for Success, Summit Salon Academy Tampa’s: Look and Learn Benefit and local women’s shelters. Every quarter we like to donate our time and services to different non-profit organizations in need. Philanthropy is at the heart of Wolf & Rabbit Marketing and we look forward to building more relationships and supporting non-profits to have a bigger impact on our community.”

Tampa, FL

Jennifer Bingham | Cru Cellars // IG

“We are supportive to all of the local schools and many other local charities that ask for donations for their annual events!  We have also done things with Make A Wish, The Children's Home, No Kid Hungry, and Tampa Theatre over the years. I do feel like I am ready to take a step soon to create more of a formal partnership with one specific charity, to make more impact and to align Cru with a particular cause. I'd love to see how others are handling this!”

Tampa, FL

Joy Hmielewski | Joyelan Photography // IG

“I have worked with many non-profits including the International Rescue Committee, Covenant House Georgia, and The Florida Holocaust Museum. I think giving back to the community is very important and I do my best to volunteer a few times a year either by photographing events or helping with various tasks.”

Tampa, FL

Kelly Maronpot | FairyTail Pet Care // IG

"We are very passionate about giving back to the community and, in particular, about animal adoption. We donate our time weekly to Suncoast Animal League, taking care of the shelter dogs & cats & posting about them on our social media to raise awareness & find their forever homes. We also volunteer monthly with the Humane Society of Tampa Bay, caring for the adoptable animals at the shelter. In addition, we have a few programs in place to support local animal charities. We donate 10% of every wedding package to the animal-related charity of our couple's choice & every year we host an 'Adopt-Don't-Shop' contest donating our services to a lucky couple that has adopted their pet.”

Tampa, FL

Lesley Pocklington | Swell Made Co. // IG

"At Swell Made Co. we believe in being kind and doing good. Simple actions make a big impact in our communities and world, that’s why we donate 5% of every purchase to Plan Canada’s 'Because I am a Girl' project. In the developing world, millions of girls are denied basic human rights; but when given a chance girls can lift themselves and their communities out of poverty. Our small contribution helps provide girls with access to essentials like education, healthcare and clean water. We’re so happy to support this project everyday and are incredibly grateful for our customers who help make this happen. They’re swell, but we already knew that. 

In addition to this project, we choose to do good when a crisis occurs. In the past, Swell Made Co. has worked with charitable groups such as Syrians Welcome, The Period Purse and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (similar to ACLU). All which have touched our hearts and make running a business day-to-day that much more rewarding."

Ontario, Canada

Tona Bell | The Paper Seahorse // IG

“We are so grateful to our supportive community and that we get to do what we love each day.  We also love our cats and dogs who enrich our lives everyday. Yearly we give to the Humane Society. We collect donations at our annual holiday party. Throughout the year, we donate merchandise and classes to school fundraisers and the Etsy Summer Craft Party. We also donate our time to community events such as Plant Museum’s Picnic in the Park (we do a kids Victorian inspired paper craft) Once a year we donate part of our sales to a local charity. Last year it was hurricane relief to SPCA Tampa Bay. 30% of all Florida items were donated to them.”

Tampa, FL