Event: FINDpdx
Bradley Angle's Development Director brought to me the issue: 130 pallets of surplus goods donated to their organization that we needed to creatively turn into funding. I created an event benefiting the organization where hundreds of volunteers unpack and merchandise the goods to sell over one weekend. After three events we've grossed $165,00.
Making it happen
Due to the donating company's timeline, there was a six-week timeframe in which to locate and contract a venue, secure permits, recruit 100+ volunteers over four days, recycle hundreds of cubic feet of packing material, support creation of logo, branding and marketing materials and facilitate promotion. Our first event saw 1200 shoppers over two days and grossed $60K.
Set up and support
Groups of corporate and community volunteers provided time and effort to unpack thousands of packages, organize a space, merchandise goods then transform a warehouse into a weekend shopping extravaganza. We decided the best format would be to sell all items at half off the lowest retail price shoppers can find, creating a unique and fun shopping experience that engaged our volunteers and continuously brings them back.
Process Improvement
Having recently completed our third FINDpdx event June, 2017, we are learning, assessing and finding ways to not only improve the flow of the event itself but to increase revenue for our beneficiary organization.