Small Businesses with Big Impact

Small businesses are a staple in our society. In the United States, of the 30 million businesses, over 20% are family-owned, 26% are minority-owned, and between the years 2000 and 2017, small businesses accounted for 66% of net new jobs. [1] And now more than ever, small businesses are showing their resiliency while still giving back to causes important to them – locally and internationally.

Nothing But Nets is lucky to have an array of small-business partners, not only in the States, but around the world. These small-but-mighty partners have stepped up the fight against malaria this year in so many ways, starting with Adam’s Pest Control.

Adam’s Pest Control is one of our small-business pest control partners, based in Medina, Minnesota. The family-owned company has been fighting pests locally in Minnesota for almost 50 years. Last year, Adam’s ramped the fight against pests up to the global level and entered the Nothing But Nets community, joining the movement to stop malaria.

Adam’s has so generously committed to donating $5.00, the cost of a bed net, for every mosquito treatment they provide, and protecting mothers, fathers and children from potentially deadly mosquito bites. In just the short span of our partnership, Adam’s has increased their contributions by almost 50%!

Speaking of repelling mozzies, another amazing small business partner is Borne Clothing, a social enterprise from down under – Australia!

While just launching this past July, Borne has already hit the ground running. Their mission is to create a future free from mosquito-borne disease, by producing sustainably-made, mosquito-repellent clothing while giving back to the fight against malaria. The founders, Bal, Tim, Dan and Pat, four recent graduates of the University of Newcastle, have generously committed to donating half of their profits to Nothing But Nets, with the belief that everyone should be able to live a life free from preventable disease.

So, we clearly have our anti-mosquito feelings here from Nothing But Nets and partners. However, there is one bug-inspired product we love…VuliWear’s fly-inspired sunglasses!

VuliWear, our third small-business partner founded by Dionne Ellison, creates a unique brand of designer sunglasses inspired by nature – specifically bug eyes.

The story: one day Dionne, a Philly/Jersey native, was surfing the web and discovered photos of insect’s eyes that were magnified so large you could see the colors and patterns of their compound eyes.  Her first thought: “they would make a ‘fly’ pair of sunglasses!!” Pun intended, of course.

VuliWear (Vuli meaning shade in Swahili) is also committed to giving a portion of their proceeds to the fight against malaria with every purchase of an innovative and creative pair of sunglasses.

Nothing But Nets is incredibly grateful to have partners like Adam’s Pest Control, Borne Clothing, and VuliWear with us in the fight against malaria. These small businesses have a huge impact in the fight against this entirely preventable disease. Every day, these small businesses and their customers across the world are providing life-saving bed nets that protect mothers, fathers, and children from malaria.

[1]: https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/Whats-New-With-Small-Business-2018.pdf