Mayo staff give holiday shopping boost to Rochester businesses
A collaboration between Gift Rochester and Mayo Clinic helped support local businesses through curated gift options exclusively for corporate gift giving this holiday season. The small business online store included 68 Rochester-area businesses.
For a second year, Gift Rochester provided managers and supervisors with an online, local shopping option to recognize their staff during the holiday season. The site offered products and services from local small businesses, creating a convenient way for organizations to give local.
Mayo Clinic helped champion the program, encouraging managers to purchase thank-you gifts for staff from Gift Rochester’s holiday pop-up store. With a focus on local, budget-friendly items for managers to select for staff, Gift Rochester is the brainchild of local branding agency White Space. It began in 2020 as a platform designed to serve area businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year the virtual shop offered nearly 200 unique gift options from local Rochester businesses, underscoring Mayo Clinic’s commitment to sustaining its neighboring business community. This year, managers and supervisors purchased over 22,000 gifts totaling more than $365,000 in merchandise from local businesses, nearly $100,000 more than last year.
“During this season of gratitude, Gift Rochester allowed Mayo Clinic managers and supervisors to support staff and local Rochester businesses at the same time,” says Erin Sexton, director of Enterprise Community Engagement. “We are thrilled to see these dollars go right back into the local economy.”
Bestsellers
As Gift Rochester’s top vendor, Carroll’s Corn had to rent a moving truck to bring in the 3,227 gallons of popcorn sold through Gift Rochester.
Owner of Carroll’s Corn, Seamus Kolb, says of the partnership, “When we sold 2,000 gallons in 2020, we were so happy we partnered with Gift Rochester. But we were blown away selling over a thousand more this year! We are proud to serve you, Rochester.”
Rounding out the top five organizations in terms of sales were: No. 2, Canadian Honker, with 1,774 meal vouchers; No. 3, Boulder Tap House with 1,485 food vouchers; No. 4, Nothing Bundt Cakes, with 1,180 bundt cake vouchers; and No. 5, Victoria’s Ristorante with 1,064 lunch vouchers.
For a full list of all 2020 and 2021 participating small businesses, visit giftrochester.com/impact.
Other partners were grateful, as well. Annie Henderson, co-owner of Forager Brewery, says: “We were so fortunate to be a part of Gift Rochester. It has been a fantastic experience. We are excited to have Forager Brewery exposed to new clients through this process. This program is amazing that it supports so many local businesses.”
Pasquale Presa, of Pasquale’s Neighborhood Pizzeria, adds: “Last year, Gift Rochester helped us so much. It gave us fuel to get through the pandemic. We were proud to partner again this year.”
Expanding programs
Beginning in December, Gift Rochester is expanding corporate gift-giving offerings. Mayo Clinic in Arizona has signed on for a curated, exclusive store to promote local business holiday gifts in the Phoenix area.
“We are thrilled to bring this option to Mayo Clinic managers and supervisors in Arizona this year and hopefully additional Mayo Clinic sites in future years,” says Pamela Glassey, manager of Employee Recognition and Events for Mayo Clinic. “Not only is Gift Rochester easy to use, we are excited to be infusing money back into our local economy.”