One of the benchmarks of a great company — inside the industry and out — is one that serves its local community well. Georgia Spa Company is one such company, with their Gives Back program that began back in 2018. We got the chance to speak with Marketing Manager Tanner Tedeschi to learn more about a specific donation they made earlier this year.
“The leadership from our founder and president, Mark Stevens, as well as our CEO Josh Kemerling, has instilled a value of passion for the community within our company,” Tedeschi shares. “We’re fortunate. We make people’s lives better through hot tubs, but then we can share some of our good fortune with the people in the community.”
By sticking to Georgia-based nonprofits, Tedeschi says the impact can be seen more closely. Over the last six years, their ability to support local organizations has grown from once every quarter to multiple each month.
One initiative that is particularly buzzworthy took place in April, when Georgia Spa Company sponsored a beehive at Grant Boys Honey.
“Some organizations are a little closer to our hearts, for one reason or another,” says Tedeschi. “We’re excited to support some organizations from year to year, and Grant Boys is one of those.”
Apart from the beehive itself, Georgia Spa donates a portion of their proceeds from the quarter to the organization, which fosters a cycle of paying it forward. “They now have a foundation as a nonprofit, and they’re donating honey to places like homeless shelters or to fire departments,” Tedeschi says.
In the midst of all of this, Grant Boys Honey has found a way to further serve their community within their niche. “They take profits from what they sell and put it into education programs,” Tedeschi says, “where they teach people about the importance of the honeybee population and what they do for us.”
But at the end of the day, the monetary donations from Georgia Spa isn’t what it’s all about. “It’s not necessarily about who’s getting how much,” he says. “It’s not about the feedback. It goes a long way to just be part of your local community, we’re just trying to be involved.”
This is the second year that Grant Boys Honey has received a donation and sponsorship from Georgia Spa, which Tedeschi says could mean a lot for a continuing partnership in the future. He also knows that something like the Gives Back program with Georgia Spa can have a great trajectory within the industry.
“We’re only one of several dealers that do something like this. I get to talk to some of them — that goes a long way, too, to be supportive of people that you connect with. I’m very thankful to other people that are open and share ideas with us, and vice versa.”
The future of community-driven programs like this one is vast, and Tedeschi knows it. “I just hope to see it continue to grow the way it has,” he says. “Any way we can continue to grow as part of the community…we’re all about it.”
This article first appeared in the October 2024 issue of AQUA Magazine — the top resource for retailers, builders and service pros in the pool and spa industry. Subscriptions to the print magazine are free to all industry professionals. Click here to subscribe.
