In late February at the AHLA Responsible Stay Summit, I met Jen Collins, President of Procure Impact. Procure Impact is a B2B marketplace for products that support overlooked communities—products ranging from candles and bath and body products to tables to art to consumer-packaged goods. I strongly encourage you to partner with Procure Impact in any way you can. Your purchases will put people to work—survivors of trafficking, veterans, at-risk youth, refugees, individuals with disabilities, and individuals who have experienced poverty, incarceration, homelessness, mental health issues and trauma, or substance use disorders. I will be posting an article about Procure Impact in the coming days.
In conjunction with the Responsible Stay Summit, AHLA announced the Dignity of Work Pledge, a commitment by hotel companies to create 100,000 hours of paid employment as a result of their Procure Impact purchases. At that time, eight hotel companies had signed the Pledge. According to Jen, three companies have since signed on, five have verbally committed, and Procure Impact is in conversation with 15 more. There are now more than 115,000 hotel rooms represented.
Hotel companies are an ideal fit for Procure Impact suppliers because they offer a lot of what the hospitality industry procures.
“Hospitality is a microcosm of the economy,” Jen told me. “There are restaurants, retail stores, spas, corporate gift opportunities and more.”
Impact Metrics Provided
Procure Impact tracks the impact of each transaction made on its platform by calculating the number of shift hours created, making it easy for hospitality companies to report on their impact goals and measure their progress. Hospitality companies get a receipt, and custom orders are available. “We are doing some customization work—a candle for the Four Seasons in Atlanta is one example,” Jen said.
Launched in 2022, Procure Impact is the idea of Founder & CEO Lauren McCann. She has a background in philanthropy, including as the Founder & CEO of Calliope Advisors, a mission-driven consulting firm and innovation partner for philanthropists and nonprofits.
“Lauren and I connected because she really wanted to get into the hospitality space,” Jen said. “We connected on LinkedIn.” Jen has 20 years of experience working in hospitality and five years in social impact.
Working with Procure Impact is a great way to build your social impact story. Shining a light on responsible purchasing can result in many good things—employee and guest retention, for example. Again, the most important impact is helping to employ people who need the work, with the purchase of products that are in most cases market priced.
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