Owner/Founder of Little Sprout Children’s Boutique accepting Champs award from CIS Board member Steve Powell and CIS Site Coordinator Maureen Cartmill.
Today we highlight Little Sprout Children’s Boutique. This CIS business partner was one of eight organizations and individuals honored at the annual Champ Celebration. CIS Board Member Steve Powell, along with Maureen Cartmill, CIS Site Coordinator at Woods Lake Elementary: A Magnet Center for the Arts, presented the award.
In the United States, there are approximately 28 million small businesses. Over half of the country’s working population works in a small business, and small businesses have generated over 65% of the net new jobs since 1965. So it’s safe to say that small businesses are a powerful part of our community. Today, we honor one small business for impacting our community in a different way.
Little Sprout Children’s Boutique, Kalamazoo’s first specialty children’s clothing store, was opened by Jeanine Seabold in 2010.
Jeanine Seabold, Owner/Founder of Little Sprout Children’s Boutique
During the summer of 2012, Jeanine had an idea to stage a children’s fashion show with the proceeds benefiting a local nonprofit who worked with children. Supporting the CIS Kids’ Closet seemed like the perfect fit for helping local kids and Jeanine’s business.
While this could have been a “one and done” partnership, Jeanine reached out to CIS the next summer with yet another idea: encouraging customers to donate school supplies for the CIS Kids’ Closet. Customers would receive a discount for their donation of school supplies and Jeanine generously offered to also donate a percentage of her anniversary sales to benefit CIS. Little Sprout has continued this partnership every year since then.
With half of all new businesses closing within their first five years, it would be easy for Little Sprout to focus solely on its own success. However, Jeanine sees success of local businesses and education as intertwined, saying, “Over the years, the critical role education plays in our economic success has become more and more apparent to me. Good, strong school systems encourage people to settle in our region because industries are more apt to locate in areas that are attractive to potential employees. Also, a well-educated population tends to spark community activism and involvement. It’s important that all local businesses in our community recognize the importance of our educational system and work with educators to seek ways to improve it. That’s why we, at Little Sprout, feel it is imperative to support organizations such as CIS, who help to ensure that ALL of our communities’ children are receiving the best opportunities.”
Little Sprout Children’s Boutique, we thank you for helping kids stay in school and achieve in life.
Click here to watch Jeanine Seabold, Owner/Founder of Little Sprout Children’s Boutique and Emily Kobza, CIS Director of Development and Business Engagement on The Lori Moore Show.
Tags: businesses in the schools, Champs, CIS Kids' Closet, Communities In Schools of Kalamazoo, Emily Kobza, Jeanine Seabold, Little Sprout Children's Boutique, Maureen Cartmill, Steve Powell, The Lori Moore Show, Woods Lake Elementary
