The Start-up Story and Overall Background of Sevenly

Sevenly was started by two men by the name of Dale Partridge and Aaron Chavez.  The creation of Sevenly officially happened on January 13th, 2011.  Both Partridge and Chavez were between 18 and 23 years-old when they began their organization. They believed that people mattered and that is why they began their journey to change the world. ‘People Matter’ is actually the motto of Sevenly to this day. They started creating weekly cause campaigns and customers purchased products from them knowing that seven dollars of their money went to the weekly charity.  

One minute videos were also created for each weekly cause. Through the young age of the entrepreneurs, they knew how to focus their efforts towards the younger generation. We may not have the desire or time to watch a fifteen minute video on a cause, but one minute gives just enough knowledge to inspire the viewer without boring them. They did not simply know how to raise money for their weekly cause, but they also found an ingenious way to create social awareness as well.

How the Model Works

        The overall goal of the Sevenly organization is to activate intentional generosity and love for others.  Instead of them going out and asking millions of people who have never supported a charity before to donate money they encouraged them to donate their social influences through social media sites.  By getting their name out there in this manner they allowed people to visit their website, www.sevenly.org, to allow them to look through their products and purchase the ones that were closely related to them personally.  Lastly, they wanted to encourage all of the donors to go and have a deeper connection with the charities that they purchased the products from.

Their goal was to raise awareness for each person out there, knowing that maybe this week’s charity would not resonate with the donor – but next weeks will. They are not focused on helping one single problem, but in helping in small amounts to many charities over time. They are known for bringing back specific charities when they believe in the cause deeply enough. A great example of this is Mercy Ships, which we will talk more of later, whom they have raised money for twice in the last three years.

How Much Progress they have Made

        Sevenly has seen millions of people donate their social influence through sharing in 

Facebook, retweeting tweets in twitter, and liking pins on Pinterest.  They have also seen hundreds 

of thousands buying the awareness products for a cause that they support.  The starters of Sevenly, 

Partridge and Chavez, are seeing their mission unfold before their eyes.  They are starting to see a 

generation moving toward generosity and the world starting to realize that people matter. In just 

three years they have gone from raising just under ten thousand dollars in one week to raising over 

thirty. In just three years they have seen our generation get on board and attempt to change the 

world, even if at this point we can only do it through material means.