Whale of a Donation

San Luis Obispo, Calif.-based Cloud Star Corp. donated more than 21,100 pounds of product, equivalent in weight to a Minke whale or 10 hippos, to non-profit organizations during 2012, the company reported Monday.That's a lot of Buddy Biscuits.

The product donations are in addition to thousands of dollars in cash donations made by the makers of Buddy Biscuits treats and other natural pet products. The company also collected more than 3,000 proof of purchases in the first three months of its Proof of Purchase Donation Program, which I wrote about earlier, in part for its elegant use of social media. (See "Gold Star to Cloud Star for Social Media, Cause Marketing."  That program, launched in October 2012, will have Cloud Star donate $1 to a designated charity for every proof-of-purchase submitted.

Not surprisingly, Cloud Star's customers supported pet causes most. (Cloud Star itself supports charities supporting animals, women, children and the environment. For the first quarter of the promotion, the three most supported charities Best Friends Animal Society, The Petfinder Foundation, and write-in candidate California Animal Rehabilitation's Care Free Rehab program, which raises funds to pay for pet rehabilitation services for pet owners who could otherwise not afford the treatment. 

Under the program, Cloud Star designated 12 initial charities but allowed anyone who submitted more than 100 proofs of purchase to nominate additional causes. Other write-in causes for 2012 include Adopt for Life Center for Animals, All Animals Matter, Cocker Pals Rescue, National Greyhound Adoption Program, and Spring Farm Cares.

“Supporting causes on both a local and national level has always been an integral part of our company,” says Jennifer Melton, co-founder of Cloud Star. “For us, doing good business includes doing good things for others, and we thank our loyal customers for helping us continue to do so."

ELSEWHERE: Aquascape Inc. has posted its 2013 catalog online and plans to mail printed copies to customers in early February. New this year, all Aquascape and AquascapePRO products are featured in a single catalog. The catalog also includes the MSRP price of each item and separate Price & Program Guides for both retailers and contractors with wholesale pricing, replacement parts guides and other information are available. To receive a printed copy of the 2013 Aquascape Catalog and appropriate price and program guide, contact customer care at 866-877-6637. In other news, Aquascape set the dates, Aug. 22-25, for Pondemonium 2013...About 285 distributor and manufacturer executives are attending the Pet Industry Distributors Association's Management Conference and Annual Meeting this week in Carlsbad, Calif.