I will never understand why Presidents’ Day is such a big retail holiday. I tried doing some research, and all I could find was that the Federal holiday is still known as Washington’s Birthday, but it’s commonly known as Presidents’ Day because so many retailers use the name. There’s no explanation for why the sales started happening in mid-February, and it’s even more puzzling that the sales are focused on durable goods like cars and mattresses. But that’s the way it is, and since we’re talking about mattresses, I think we should take a look at Sleepy’s. They are based in Hicksville, NY with 700+ showrooms across Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia. It all adds up to make them the “largest mattress retailer in the world.” Sleepy’s tv advertisements are ubiquitous, so it’s nearly impossible for me to think about mattresses with out thinking Sleepy’s (and hearing their jingle in my head).
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It’s hard not to notice homelessness when you live in a big city like Chicago. I can’t even leave my apartment without seeing a panhandler–there’s one guy who is always sitting in front of the Starbucks down the street during the day and in front of the Hooters next door at night. I don’t give him money because I don’t think that it helps solve the root of the problem, but I often think about what would be an effective solution. Pathways to Housing is a non-profit organization that seems to have it figured out. They’re based in New York, NY with offices in Burlington, VT; Washington, DC: and Philadelphia, PA, and they’ve taken a “housing first” approach that is focused on “addressing homelessness among people with psychiatric disabilities.” In other words, they provide housing before any other services, and they’ve found that this is a far more effective way to attack the root causes of homelessness.
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Unfortunately, I can’t report on the election results because I’m writing this a day in advance because I will have flown to Munich last night. However, I can guarantee that regardless of how the people voted, green energy is still going to be a huge market. Renewables are big, and they’re becoming more and more accessible to average people. Alteris Renewables is a Wilton, CT based company that offers affordable renewable energy solutions to residential, commercial, and educational customers. They also have offices in Stonington, CT; Stamford, CT; New Bedford, MA; Albany, NY; Saratoga Springs, NY; New York, NY; Parsippany, NJ; Malvern, PA; Providence, RI; Waitsfield, VT; and Montpelier, VT. Yes, they pretty much have the Northeast covered. They also have the awesome growth rate covered, as they’re #417 on the Inc. 500 with 710% three-year growth to $56.4 million in revenue last year.
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Now that we’re done celebrating a hockey victory here in Chicago, it’s time for World Cup fever. I’ve never been a huge fan of soccer—probably because it’s not the most suitable sport for someone who was both chubby and asthmatic growing up—but even I can get into the World Cup. If there’s any sport that bridges all cultures, it has to be soccer. And that means that it’s particularly well suited to international non-profit work. That explains Grassroot Soccer, a Norwich, VT based non-profit that was started by former professional soccer players to help fight HIV in Africa. They do this by training “African soccer stars, coaches, teachers, and peer educators in the world’s most HIV-affected countries to deliver an interactive HIV prevention and life skills curriculum to youth.” They’re especially focused on using the excitement surrounding the 2010 World Cup to increase engagement with their programs.
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I know that it sounds like a place to buy illicit substances, but Dealer.com is a legal operation as far as I know. They may operate in the underworld of search engine optimization, but so do I, and I’m not a sleaze bag or spammer. Dealer.com is a Burlington, VT based company that “has become the global leader in online marketing solutions for the automotive industry.” They provide a platform for car dealers to generate leads online. I’d imagine that Dealer.com is a direct competitor with Cobalt, a company that we featured back in January. It’s no surprise that automotive online marketing is a growing industry. Most car dealerships don’t have the resources to do online marketing themselves—cheesy tv commercials don’t translate to the web. So how do they reach the masses of people who are using search engines to aid in car buying decisions? They either build an internal online marketing division, hire a local agency that doesn’t know anything about the industry, or go to Dealer.com. Which decision do you think will sell the most cars?
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Although we don’t have a Veterans Day themed post for today, we hope that you’ll celebrate by thanking a Vet and possibly checking out our post from last year on jobs at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Earlier this week we took a look at Seed Media Group, a relatively new company that is finding success in an otherwise declining industry by focusing on a specific niche. Another company that is taking a similar approach is EatingWell Media Group, which is based in Charlotte, VT (near Burlington). They are “a fast-growing, independent communications company producing an award-winning national consumer magazine, high-quality food and nutrition-related books, a content-rich website, e-mail newsletters, and serving content to strategic partners with other electronic media.” It’s all about healthy eating without sacrificing the enjoyment of food. Some people think that those two things are mutually exclusive, but EatingWell Media Group has built its business on delivering content that proves otherwise.
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Sustainability has become a major buzzword over the past few years. Anyone who wants to appear to be a qualified leader has jumped on the bandwagon and started using the word loosely. For the most part we identify “sustainability” with the environment, but it can really apply to anything. My definition is something like “helping to create a situation in which you can keep doing what you’re doing for a long time.” It’s really about a long-run mindset instead of a short-run mindset. For Institute for Sustainable Communities sustainability is a long run thing. They’re a Montpelier, VT based non-profit that has had sustainability on its mind since it was founded in 1991 by Vermont’s then-governor Madeleine M. Kunin.
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On Sunday morning I woke up to a massive lake effect snow squawl. My first thought was, “I don’t want to go outside today.” Then I realized that everyone else was thinking the same thing and that all those brunch spots that are usually a two hour wait would probably have tables available. Then I wimped out and decided to make pancakes – chocolate chip pancakes. So, I pulled out the King Arthur Flour and searched for their pancakes recipe in Google. I was shocked to learn that this is one of their King Arthur Flour Guaranteed Recipes. If I somehow managed to screw up, they had a phone number that I could call to get someone to help me fix it. Oh yeah, and they’d send me a $5 Baker’s Catalogue gift certificate for my troubles. Luckily the pancakes were delicious, and I didn’t have to take advantage of their fantastic customer service offerings, but the idea that a flour company even offers customer service is remarkable. I always say that companies that treat their customers well make great places to work, and this appears to be true with Norwich, VT based King Arthur Flour.
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Not only is it Friday, but it’s also a Snow Day here in Chicago! Judging from the map on The Weather Channel, there’s a good chance that you’re enjoying a Snow Day too. My favorite thing to do when school was cancelled was to go sledding, and I haven’t outgrown it yet. If downtown Chicago had a single decent hill, I’d be there as soon as I finish writing this. Of course, I’d have to stop and buy a sled first. In college it’s easy – you just “borrow” a tray from the dining hall, and that’s your sled for the winter, but when you’re an adult you need to take things a little more seriously. That’s why Hammerhead Sleds exists. They make sleds for big kids. Actually, that’s an understatement. They make the most bad ass sleds that I have ever seen. These sleds aren’t cheap, though. They run $349, but they sure look worth it.
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I have to admit that the first time that I noticed the Seventh Generation brand in the grocery store, I was kind of grossed out. That’s because I noticed a big display of toilet paper packages all bearing the company’s name. When I think about what I want from toilet paper, the most important thing is that it’s first generation. We can talk about softness and how many ply it is after that. I realize that my disgust was completely irrational, but I don’t ever want to think that the toilet paper that I’m buying is anything but new. After visiting Seventh Generation’s website, I found out that “the company derives its name from the Great Law of the Iroquois that states, ‘In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations.’” This makes sense because Seventh Generation, which is based in Burlington, VT, is aiming to become “the world’s most trusted brand of authentic, safe, and environmentally-responsible products for a healthy home.” They seem to be doing a good job considering that their products have saved 287,359 trees and 584,650 gallons of petroleum at last count.
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Hopefully college hasn’t drained you of your youth, because its going to be one of your strongest assets if you want to apply for an entry level jobs with today’s company. Fuse Marketing is a youth marketing agency that focuses on offering Consulting, Event Marketing, Communications, and Creative services. They work to “connect brands with youth through sports, music, fashion and other relevant youth cultural interests.” They’ve worked with Eastern Mountain Sports to build a more youthful customer base and with the Association of Surfing Professionals to increase awareness of its World Championship Tour. These are just a couple of examples of how major brands trust Fuse Marketing to reach young people.
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With the first day of fall just two days a way, you can definitely feel a chill in the air (at least if you’re in the Northeast like me). The leaves are already starting to change colors, and before you know it there will be snow on the ground. For many this is a depressing picture, but for those of you who love snowboarding, the coming of winter is filled with excitement. Snowboarding is all about seeing hope in the desolate bleakness of winter, and that’s the kind of attitude that Chill is looking for in Local Coordinators. The Chill program is a nonprofit learn–to-snowboard program for underserved youth run by Burton Snowboards.
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If you consider going fishing after work and being in bed by 10 a night well spent, then working at Orvis will be perfect for you. Ditto if you enjoy helping your co-workers train their dogs on your lunch break. How do I know? I spent the summers after my sophomore and junior years as an intern in the Human Resources Department. Why did I pick Orvis? Because I am a life long fly fisherman and I love their products.
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“Many Burton employees will snag freshies first thing in the morning before coming in to work during the winter.” Being non “riders,” we’re not quite sure what that means, but it sounds like Burton is a place where people love what they do. As if that wasn’t enough, their logo matches our color scheme, so we had to do a post about the world’s first snowboard factory.
Burton currently has three great entry-level opportunities that are perfect for someone fresh out of college. In their Irvine, CA location there are two positions: they are hiring a PR Coordinator (preferably someone who is positive, enthusiastic – especially about snowboarding, and a great communicator) and a US Apparel Sales Manager (this time they’re looking for somebody who is independent, investigative, and into traveling a lot). At their headquarters in Burlington, VT, they have an opening in product development as an Assistant Product Manger – Burton Binding for someone with excellent Adobe Illustrator skills and basic knowledge of how plastic injected parts are manufactured. The cool thing about these postings is that the job descriptions are honestly written (one job description that is sadly not entry-level used the word “stoked”) and provide the goals they have set for their future hire. Burton wants to hire passionate people, and that is certainly reflected in the way they write their job postings.
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