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Rescuing Dogs with Pizza Boxes in Charlotte, North Carolina
A small business owner in Charlotte, North Carolina noticed how many dogs in her city needed good homes and she wanted to find a way to help.
Denise Simonelli and her husband own a pizza shop called Lorenzo’s. They came up with the unique idea of placing photos of shelter animals on their pizza boxes. They got flyers from local shelters and taped them to the top of the boxes.
Since they deliver over 500 boxes of pizza in a weekend this placed the flyers in many homes. The flyers now feature dogs, but they hope to add cats and even horses. More and more local shelters are reaching out to Lorenzo’s and sending them flyers of their most in need animals.
Thank you @wcnctv
Posted by Lorenzo's Pizzeria on Friday, March 6, 2020
The flyers show a photo of the animal, their name and any details available on breed, age and size. Their story was recently featured on WCNC Charlotte.
If one of their customers adopts a pet because of seeing one of the dog’s photo’s, they receive a $25 gift card from Lorenzo’s.
The response from their customers has all been supportive. They’re happy a local eatery is taking on the job of helping shelters find good homes for their animals.
Now, when customers order from Lorenzo’s, they not only get delicious pizza, but a chance to find their new best friend.
There are many ways small businesses can help local shelters
Here are just a few ideas for small businesses to help out locally…
Host fund-raisers where the profits from one day/evening go to the shelter. Advertise the event through social media.
Hand out flyers at the place of business, post them by booths, or mail them with advertisements or invoices.
Add a donation jar near the cash register asking customers to give their change to benefit the shelter.
Hold an event where everyone who brings a bag of food, a chew toy, a dog bed, or blanket to donate are given a discount coupon for the business.
Organizations such as churches and clubs can ask representatives from the shelter to come to meetings or dinners and speak about what they do for rescue animals. They can bring a few animals with them. Sometimes seeing one of these sweet pups or adorable kittens is all that is needed to capture the heart of a future adopter.
This not only helps the shelters but shows that the small business is actively involved and committed to their local community.
