Denver Entrepreneurs Do Well By Doing Good

Creative entrepreneurs in Denver have found ways to give back to the causes they care about. BetterWall sells exhibition street banners on behalf of major art museums, generating revenue for museums and recycling tons of vinyl along the way. The Import Warehouse is a customer-focused car dealership that donates 1 percent of each sale to charity.

Denver, CO (PRWEB) September 22, 2006 -- Starting a business is never easy. Honing an idea, scraping together funds, worrying about healthcare, and just getting up the nerve to move ahead can all be overwhelming tasks. But a few entrepreneurs in Denver, Colorado, piled on an even more daunting challenge -- finding a way to build successful new businesses that benefit not just themselves but the causes they care about.

For Nicolas and Nora Weiser, founders of BetterWall (www.betterwall.com), their passions were clear. Nora is an art historian by training, and Nicolas had worked in the environmental consulting field. Both love the arts, museums and the environment. They wanted to find a way to have a positive impact on these areas, and BetterWall proved to be a unique and successful solution.

Now counting over 20 major art museums among their partners, BetterWall works with the museums to sell their used exhibition street banners as limited-edition wall hangings for peoples’ homes and offices. A portion of the proceeds go back to the museums to support programs, exhibitions, collections and operations. Of course, having hung outside on the streets of New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Denver and other major cities, many of the banners are damaged and cannot be sold. These damaged banners are consolidated to create enough tonnage to have the banners recycled. BetterWall has already saved some 12 tons of vinyl from landfills since they began in 2004.

“Consumers love the visual beauty of the banners,” says Nora Weiser, “and also that they are the authentic street banners produced by these great museums. The fact that their purchase helps to support these valuable cultural institutions and keeps vinyl out of landfills is an added bonus to them.” Today’s consumers want to “do good” and “buy green,” but not at the expense of good design. BetterWall has found a way for consumers to get exactly what they want -- a gorgeous piece of art they would buy anyway -- but that also makes a difference.

The Import Warehouse (www.theimportwarehouse.com) in Denver was founded by Robert Savi, who has also made the “do good” element a no-brainer for his clientele. Savi’s car dealership focuses on making the car buying experience easy, honest and pressure-free for customers. But Savi’s business model not only gives consumers a truly fair deal on a car, it also let’s them give back to the causes they care about. The Import Warehouse donates 1 percent of the purchase price of each vehicle sold to charity. Customers may choose from almost four dozen non-profit organizations that have teamed with The Import Warehouse, or they may select their own charity of choice. Current partners include: Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, Colorado Wildlife Federation, Colorado Coalition for the Homeless, Center for Peoples with Disabilities, Food Bank of the Rockies, and the Denver Zoo.

“Giving a portion of sales proceeds to charity is usually something only large corporations do,” says Savi, “but I started thinking that if my small business did the same thing, I could make a difference too.” Of course, 1 percent is a lot more of a financial hardship for a small business than a major conglomerate. The Import Warehouse donated over $30,000 to charities last year, and is on target to donate nearly $40,000 this year. Sustaining this commitment has been built into Savi’s business model from the start, so for him it is just a part of doing business.

More and more entrepreneurs are looking at ways they can make a difference in their communities, and the momentum and energy of these forward-looking businesses may spread the practice even further. There are endless opportunities that are hidden below the surface, and fortunately, entrepreneurs like the Weisers and Savi are finding them.

For more information contact Nora Weiser, BetterWall, 303.756.6615 or Robert Savi, The Import Warehouse, 303.629.0966 x11

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