He Aims for Those Who Lovetogive

By Tim Mekeel, Lancaster New Era, Pa.

Apr. 28–Nate Hoffer believes it’s the thought that counts, not the amount.

Though some people are reluctant to make small donations to charities, feeling such gifts are irrelevant, Hoffer sees it differently.

So he has set up a Web site where people can buy Christian and fair-trade merchandise, and automatically give a modest sum to the cause of their choice in the process.

After a year of development, the first-of-its-kind Web site, www.LoveToGive.net, began operating Sunday.

“A lot of people have a complex about whether or not their contribution will be valued,” said Hoffer.

“But giving is more an attitude of the heart. We believe if we allow people to give just two or three dollars on a purchase they’re making, it’s enough to feel good about.”

“The actual dollar amount isn’t as important as the act of giving,” he said.

Hoffer, 27, of Ephrata, said LoveToGive offers more than 100,000 products, including books, devotionals, Bibles, CDs, DVDs, gifts, clothing, woodworking pieces and other crafts, including fair-trade merchandise.

Fair-trade merchandise refers to products made by Third World artisans who work in good conditions and are paid a fair price for their wares.

“We’re an online combination of Berean [Christian Stores] and Ten Thousand Villages,” explained Hoffer.

LoveToGive passes along half of its profit on each item sold to the charity of the buyer’s choosing, as long as the charity has a Christian purpose and has registered with the Web site.

“We’re allowing people to donate to causes they care about just by buying things they were going to buy anyway,” explained Hoffer.

Half of LoveToGive’s profit equates to 15 percent of the purchase price on average and a minimum of 10 percent, he said.

“We’re confident that, even though we’ll be giving away half of our profit, with a high volume of sales, we’ll be able to make a living,” said Hoffer, who started the venture with his wife, Rebekah.

“Our sort of motto is ‘purpose before profit.’ We firmly believe in defining your purpose and the profit will be there.

“We feel that by giving away so much of our profit, that will create a lot of buzz and attract more people to our Web site and create a loyal customer base,” he said.

Eligible recipients include churches, pregnancy centers, homeless shelters, mission trips and disabled-worker programs, among other causes with Christian purposes.

“We don’t require the cause to submit a statement of faith. We just want to know that what they’re doing lines up with the Christian faith,” said Hoffer.

Causes can register with LoveToGive for free. They also can have a blog on the Web site and post volunteer needs and job openings, again at no charge.

Although there are other charitable-giving Web sites, Hoffer said LoveToGive is uniquely structured.

On the other sites, shoppers find links to retailers’ online stores. When shoppers routed through these other sites make a purchase at the online stores, the stores pay a commission back to the sites.

The sites then pass along some of the commission to the charities. This results in donations equal to 4 or 5 percent of the amount spent by the shoppers, said Hoffer.

In contrast, LoveToGive itself displays merchandise it has selected from certain wholesalers. Shoppers do business with LoveToGive, not hop all over the World Wide Web, said Hoffer.

Purchases made on LoveToGive result in donations three times larger than purchases made via other sites, he said. At the same time, charities can use LoveToGive to communicate with the public and vice versa.

“It’s more than a place to shop. It’s a place to connect,” said Hoffer.

Hoffer, who’s running the Web site from his West Main Street home, is a graduate of McCaskey High School and Eastern Mennonite University. He’s pursuing an MBA from Eastern University.

He previously worked for three years at Loving and Caring Inc., which creates parenting and adoption workbooks and brochures for clients of pregnancy centers. He was its operations manager, then most recently its interim executive director.

—–

To see more of the Lancaster New Era, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.lancasteronline.com/newera.

Copyright (c) 2008, Lancaster New Era, Pa.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.