YOLO SPOTLIGHT – Jenni Biggs and the Do Good Shop
Who doesn’t want a place to go where you can find unique, one of a kind gifts, that are also ethically sourced and provides funding for great causes world wide? If this sounds like you, the Do Good Shop was designed just for you. (dogoodshop.org)
The online shop sells clothing, handbags, jewelry, home and garden items, food and gifts for everyone. Purchases allow donations to charitable causes such as human trafficking, poverty, homelessness, and the environment. The Do Good Shop is a registered 501(3c) nonprofit organization.
Who is behind this great idea? Jenni Biggs!
FUN FACT #1
Jenni grew up all over, mostly in California, and settled in California when she was nine years old. She eventually went to University of California-Davis and married her high school sweetheart. They have been married 30 years and their kids are almost 25, 22, and 14 years old. Jenni was very social and chatty in high school, yet hated public speaking (like most kids, right?), but now she does it all the time to support and promote her organization. She was supposed to work on the shop for 20 hours per week, but we can tell there is much more effort put into it than that! In her spare time (?), she enjoys reading memoirs, going out to dinner with friends, having TV/movie nights, and doing jigsaw puzzles.
FUN FACT #2
Jenni left her job working with teens and started the Do Good Shop in 2016. She has been shopping fair trade for years and had the idea to make it easier for others to shop this way as well. She used to have to go to different stores to obtain different items. But Jenni has always been a big dreamer and realized she could develop an online store where people could do it all in place. Her friends and family backed the idea and she took off!
FUN FACT #3
Pre-COVID, most of her sales were small pop-up shops. She opened Labor Day weekend in 2016. COVID slowed down the pop-up concept and the online store and catalog took over. At first, Jenni reduced her work and took Mondays to work on the shop and take care of the administrative work needed to obtain non-profit status. Now, most days find her processing orders, planning social media, contacting artisans, taking care of compliance needs, and paying the bills. Once a week, there is a live sale and once a month she still has a pop-up shop. Jenni loves to talk to people for a few minutes and tell them about the shop and what it is about. She tells them that there are the same kind of items that you would find at Target or craft fairs. She is especially proud of the shop’s ethically sourced, personalized, gift baskets.
What’s Happening at the Do Good Shop?
1. The vendor’s shops come in all sizes and can be found in both the United States and overseas. Jenni has quite a bit of contact with the vendors and feels it is similar to a mentor-type relationship. Besides the United States, you will find goods from Uganda, Kenya, and Tijuana. Jenni also helps facilitate the relationship between the vendors and stores. She is currently the Executive Director as well as being the founder.
2. She has had success placing the products in AirBnBs so people can see, use, then purchase the items. She would love to get into hospital gift shops and is pursuing Corporate sponsorships. She has also used her personal contacts to help make connections.
3. Ideally, her goal is to solid and consistent business for each of the artisans. Jenni has the most heart for the smaller, unknown vendors. She feels her two most important purposes at this time are to educate the public and show them how to connect with this special kind of shopping and to empower people who need a hand up and a consistent, steady paycheck.
Jenni’s motto is : One Christmas gift each year from the Do Good Shop makes a huge difference to someone, their family, and a worthy cause. You can shop at dogoodsop.org. Give them a try!