Buy a Tree

Vancouver Christmas Tree Lot

Wondering about North Vancouver?

Due to unforeseen circumstances, we are unable to open our North Vancouver Lot this year. We hope to continue selling trees in North Vancouver in 2013, so please check back for details next year.

US VS. THE COMPETITION

Yes. There are ‘big box’ stores such as IKEA and SuperStore which sell Christmas Trees. Also, there are other non-profit tree lots run by organizations such as the Rotary Club or various highschools. Aunt Leah’s Christmas Tree Lots are the only business enterprises in the Lower Mainland that dedicate 100% of their profits to fund programs that help prevent children in foster care from becoming homeless, and young mothers from losing custody of their children.   
Aunt Leah’s distinguishes itself from its competition in four ways: efficiency, marketing, product line, and customer service.

• Large-scale use of volunteers cut labor costs while improving customer service and word-of-mouth sales (236 volunteers in 2010);
• electronic point of sale machines have increased convenience, accountability and professionalism;
• an increased variety of trees solidified a higher-end niche market while avoiding competition with ‘big box’ stores selling mono-crop trees as ‘loss leaders’;
• personalized service (description of tree qualities, tree bagging, car roof tie down, tree care advice) increased customer satisfaction;
• and highlighting the charitable portion of the tree purchase with an info package increased awareness of Aunt Leah’s social mission.

This year, as profits increased by 18% from the previous year, new innovations included intense use of social media marketing; an onsite showroom/demonstration forest; and handouts describing features and benefits of tree varieties.

TRAINING FOR TEENS

Your tree purchase also helps us provide our Retail Training Program, giving at-risk youth early experience in sales and service that will remain on their resume for years to come. Our business enterprises also act as ‘real-world’ training situations for at-risk youth, who often have no previous employment experience. Last year, one of our past ‘Support Link’ graduates was hired on as Manager for our Burnaby Christmas Tree Lot. We also run Retail Training through our other long-running social enterprise: Aunt Leah’s Thrift Store. Students leave the program with experience in customer service, cash handling, sales, advertising, promotion, inventory, pricing, display and stocking.

PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

Aunt Leah’s has operated a Christmas Tree Lot in Vancouver as a social enterprise since 1995, while using profits to fund its training and residential programs that help youth throughout the Lower Mainland. In 2004, a second lot was opened in Burnaby and tree sale profits have risen consistently. We will expand the franchise in November 2011 by opening a two additional lots (Coquitlam and North Vancouver), increasing the long-term financial independence and sustainability of Aunt Leah’s programming. Last year our two Christmas tree lots – situated in Vancouver and Burnaby – raised a net profit of $80,000. Net profits from tree sales have increased ten-fold over the past decade and represent an ever-increasing portion of the society’s overall revenue. Ten years ago, tree sales represented 2% of the society’s net revenue; today these sales account for 7% of our funding. By opening an additional Christmas tree lot, a goal has been set for tree sales to represent 10% of annual revenue by 2012 and 15% by 2015 – furthering the objectives of financial independence and long-term stability. These self-generated channels of financing protect Aunt Leah’s vital programming from the vagaries of governmental or charitable funding.

TREE LOTS CONTACT INFORMATION

For more Information about our Tree Lots, please contact Angelina at 778-888-2645 or aoates@auntleahs.org

VOLUNTEERING AT AUNT LEAH’S TREE LOTS

This is a great holiday activity to do with family and friends. Sign up with your own group or if you sign up as an individual volunteer, we will pair you up with some of our other great volunteers. Volunteer jobs are in customer service/sales, cashier, lot maintenance and set-up and clean-up. Not everyone has to do heavy lifting! If this is a concern for you, we can make sure you are signed up to work as cashier or providing customer service. More physical work on the lots includes holding trees to show families, helping load trees to their vehicle and trimming trunks and lower branches. There will staff and other volunteers there to help you! Shifts are four hours long and we like to sign volunteers up in groups of four for busy days and 2-3 for less busy days. We have four Tree Lot Locations where you can volunteer. Please contact Karry Shaw, our Volunteer Coordinator, at (604) 525-1204 x234 or volunteer@auntleahs.org  for more information or to sign up!

TREE LOT SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Promote your business by sponsoring Aunt Leah’s Charity Tree Lots. Sponsorship will be customized to meet your needs.
Contact Trina Bagnall for more information: 604-525-1204 ext 224 or tbagnall@auntleahs.org.

Christmas Trees:

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