Sharing Generosity

One sip at a time. By Mike Trittin.

The Northwest is home to some awesome people. We enjoy a culture that’s as unique as it is fun. We are caring, generous, smart, and fun. But most importantly, our community has a heart. It has a heart for people and helping those in need. And, believe it or not, there’s an unlikely company spearheading this generosity movement right in our backyard - a wine label.

It all started with two friends having a glass of wine on a backyard porch. After spending over a year as part of Mercy Ships in Africa, Monte Regier was telling his friend, Martin Barrett, about the brokenness abroad. Most of us know the hunger crisis going on, but Monte had a first-hand look at it. And it changed his life. “You can feed a child on $1 per day,” Monte told Martin. Martin took a long glance at his wine, and as he sipped it, he responded, “So, a glass of wine can feed an orphan for a day?” Thus, Sozo Friends was born.

Sozo Friends has grown to be a well respected local wine label, specializing in artisan crafted wines and food to support charitable organizations for human needs’ causes. But don’t let the cause attachment fool you, the products lead with excellence. Their wines won a Bronze, Gold and Best in Class Gold Medals at the 2011 Los Angeles International Wine Awards. They also won two Silver Medals and a Gold Medal at the 2012 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Awards. In addition to their awards, Sozo is served in the finest of Northwest Restaurants including Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse and the Seattle favorite, Canlis.

Sozo’s featured partner is Rescue:Freedom, a local organization combating human trafficking. In their words, “Rescue:Freedom exists to empower the rescue and restoration of those suffering in sexual slavery.” They’ve rescued girls and children out of brothels and mentored them through college graduation. It’s flat-out amazing the work that this local organization is doing. Check them out at (www.rescuefreedom.org)

While they’ve enjoyed success in the restaurant industry, Sozo is all about creating a culture of generosity. They’ve created gift box products that allow businesses to custom-brand closing gifts, client/employee appreciation gifts, and holiday gifts — with a percentage of the proceeds going directly to the human-needs charity of the firm’s choice. In this competitive marketplace, having a cause sets your business apart. In fact, a recent survey showed that 73% of people would switch brands if a different brand of similar quality supported a good cause. Thus, local businesses are using Sozo to not only help their community, but help build their brands as well.

Monte and Martin explained that in our brain we have something called the “pleasure gland,” which secretes a chemical called dopamine that creates our experience of pleasure. Interestingly, generosity can cause this! Thus, a shared generosity experience can build trust, an attachment to memory, and an increase in brand loyalty. So, it appears that being generous can help your business all while helping people locally and internationally. It doesn't get any better than that.

I had the opportunity to chat with the president of Lexus of Seattle, Brad Castonguay, who has been using Sozo Gifts for a few months now, giving to Rescue:Freedom. Not only is he a great guy, but he has a heart for folks in need. “I’m a big believer in helping locally,” he said. Castonguay shared that providing gifts that also support non-profit groups not only benefits his customers as a great way of saying thank you, but it also exposes and educates people on the charitable organizations. “It’s great to work with an organization that allows the flexibility of choosing an organization we want to help,” he said. They’ve received a lot of positive comments from people appreciating the fact they’re getting a gift and impacting the community. Brad encourages his managers to be sure and share the story with their customers. It’s an awareness thing for Brad. And that’s the type of folks Sozo loves working with. People who get it. Sure, they see a return in brand loyalty, but they also realize that generosity is contagious and they get to be a part of building a generous community. One that loves and helps others.

So, if you’re thinking about purchasing gifts, search out those businesses that also support good causes. Not only will you be building brand loyalty in your customers, but you’ll also have an opportunity to give back to your community. We in the northwest are a community of people helping people. And with neighbors like Sozo, we have another great opportunity to give back. I don’t know if it’ll ever taste so good!

To find out more about using Sozo in your business, contact: miket@sozofriends.com or call 253.229.3721.

More with Mike: www.Realtyin253.com

253.229.3721 | MikeTrittin@KW.com

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