“On and Open” is an exciting example of businesses coming together to find innovative ways to help other small businesses create much needed cash flow. Many small businesses in Statesboro have limited online presence and only a few have the ability to sell products online. Josh Whitfield, Owner of Whitfield Signs, partner in Pioneer Designs and developer of the West District, watched many people and business partners in looking for ways to pay it forward and support each other through this shelter in place crisis. This reminded him why Statesboro is one of America’s Best Communities.
Josh Whitfield along with Sean Fox, who is also a Partner and Creative Director of Pioneer Designs, identified challenges some businesses and individuals were having in trying to find a way to come together to support each other. They began looking for a way to help provide another option to benefit our area’s small business community.
With this in mind, they created OnandOpen.com, a digital marketplace for local small businesses to offer discounted gift cards and products to help supplement the loss of cash flow due to COVID-19. It truly gives you chill bumps to know that people can be this generous and unimaginably philanthropic.
They designed the website and are offering this marketplace completely FREE to small businesses in our community. 100% of the proceeds from every gift certificate purchased on On and Open will go directly to the small business. This amazing idea and tremendously valuable tool that our community desperately needs is…..FREE. Amazing!
A Message from Josh Whitfield
The Best Way You Can Help NOW
Every business who participates is also offering substantial discounts as a thank you to their customers who are stepping up to help them in this critical time. The goal with this is through their collective efforts, they can help all of our small business owner friends keep the lights on and the doors open through this pandemic and for years to come.
This week is a perfect time to launch the digital marketplace because most citizens have received $1,200 deposited into their bank account from the CARES relief program.
Many of you will need these funds to cover essential expenses like rent, food and utilities.
However, there are people in our community whose income has not dramatically changed at this point. This would be a wonderful way to “reinvest” this money back into our business community and increase the value of your funds with the extra discounts offered by the businesses. We encourage you to also think about five of your favorite businesses that you just could not imagine continuing after they weather this storm, and commit to purchasing a minimum of $50 each in gift certificates to support them. This could be the difference in their survival. This is a phenomenal win-win for you and the businesses.
How to sign your business up
Grice connect Partners with OnandOpen
Grice Connect will be partnering with OnandOpen to help promote this opportunity and look for creative ways to help expand the efforts between our two platforms.
“We at GriceConnect love this idea and send out a HUGE GRICE GOOD to Josh and Sean for stepping up for our community in a huge way”, said DeWayne Grice, Editor GriceConnect. “At GriceConnec,t we have looked for opportunities to encourage and support our small businesses who are the lifeblood of our community. We immediately launched an “open businesses” directory in partnership with the Statesboro-Bulloch Chamber and then partnered with Bulloch VOAD and BoroTakeOut to launch the Fuel the Fight, which provides restaurant gift cards to our front line heroes.
Our hope is that everything we do will serve as a catalyst for ideas for businesses to step up and encourage individuals to make a difference in small ways. OnandOpen exceeds our wildest dreams in what we as a community can do. But we expect no less from Josh Whitfield and Sean Fox. They exceed expectations everyday for their customers and our community. We are thrilled to be supporting this project. With your help this will make a HUGE difference for so many businesses.”
PLEASE join this effort now! This is an exciting opportunity for small businesses and a wonderful way for everyone to step up in extraordinary ways and support all of our local businesses in this time of great need.
