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Have a Question About Our Wreath Fundraiser?
Your nonprofit organization might have a lot of questions about how our wreath fundraiser works. Our website is full of information to help you learn more about the Profit With Evergreens® program. You can find specific questions and answers here, arranged by category. Or you can call our office at 1-800-767-7778 and speak with one of our friendly customer service representatives.
1. Why Choose Sherwood Forest Farms?
Sherwood Forest Farms does not cut down trees or use old growth trees to supply the raw materials for our Christmas wreaths and evergreens. In fact, our evergreens are harvested by trimming the trees. This trimming helps keep the ecosystem healthy and thriving.
Sherwood Forest Farms has been providing nonprofit organizations such as church groups, scout groups, school groups and others with holiday evergreens fundraisers since 1954. Our experience has given us the opportunity to constantly improve the Profit with Evergreens® fundraising program. This experience benefits your nonprofit organization's fundraising efforts.
Yes! We have a superior customer service team that can assist you in our fundraising goals. Here at Sherwood Forest Farms our customer service team works hard to be accessible, friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. We pride ourselves in offering customer service that goes the extra mile every time!
Contact us at 1-800-767-7778 or 360-357-8300 to speak with a customer service team member anytime during our business hours. A real person answers the phone from 7am to 5pm Monday through Friday, not a pre-recorded phone tree. You can also send us an email through our Contact Us page here on our website. The same customer service team will respond to your needs just as quickly.
One of the wonderful facets of our fundraising program is that your nonprofit organization decides your own retail prices, so the profit margin is up to you. The cost to your organization is set, and whatever your nonprofit charges over above that cost is your profit. We feel it is important that every nonprofit organization has the ability to decide their own profit margin and also be sure the prices they charge fit for the community where they sell. In addition, to assist your nonprofit in deciding your prices, we illustrate a suggested retail price on the price list. This gives your nonprofit organization some ideas about pricing to get you started.
No! In fact, we strive to keep the wreath fundraiser as simple as possible. One of the ways we do this is by keeping the pricing simple and straightforward. There is no calculating needed by you to figure out the cost to your nonprofit organization. All of our prices include shipping and handling (except for Alaska and Hawaii). Also, you do not pay extra for plastic bags for your evergreens products. All wreaths and evergreens come individually bagged within the case for easy handling by you and your sellers.
One of the great things about our fundraising program is the 100% guarantee for quality, fresh Christmas wreaths and evergreens. We stand behind our wreaths and evergreens and want to be sure your customers are happy with their fresh evergreens as well. If you ever have any problems with any product just call our office and speak to one of our helpful customer service team members. If possible, we will ship replacement products, or if we are unable to replace, we can credit your nonprofit organization. All you have to do is call Sherwood Forest Farms.
Each Christmas wreath and evergreen is conveniently packaged in an easy to handle plastic bag. No worrying about purchasing bags for the products or the task of bagging every item before passing them out. All evergreens are boxed in sturdy cardboard cases designed to withstand the shipping process. Additionally, we encourage you to reuse or recycle any packaging that your local recycling program will accept.
Absolutely! Every nonprofit organization is entitled to one free sample between the first of October and the Final Order deadlines. We feel a sample wreath or evergreen product helps your fundraiser by giving your customers and sellers a chance to experience the quality of our fresh wreaths and holiday evergreens. You can order a sample wreath for your nonprofit organization by calling our customer service team. Please give at least 10 days notice when ordering.
Your sales materials (catalogs, order collecting envelopes, address labels, etc.) are free! All you have to do is sign up for the wreath fundraiser. Call our office to sign up or fill out the Program Sign Up form and fax or mail it to our office. Once you sign up, you can also create your own sales materials and print them out yourself in the My Account area of our website.
Noble Fir grows at a high altitude in the Cascade Mountains of the Pacific Northwest. This means the fresh Christmas wreaths, centerpieces, and other holiday evergreens your nonprofit organization is getting are hearty, exceptionally beautiful, and fragrant.
2. How The Wreath Fundraiser Works
2A. The Full-Line Program
With this option of the Christmas wreath fundraiser your nonprofit organization may sell both the Case Items and the Gift Items. The Case Items are ordered by the case and delivered to your nonprofit organization to distribute to your local customers. The Gift Items are sold and boxed individually and shipped directly to the recipient. If your nonprofit chooses the Full-Line Program, we would always recommend offering the Gift Items to your customers also as an easy way to increase your sales and profits.
Yes, all wreaths and evergreen items that come in cases are ordered by the case. We only ship in full case amounts. Also, we cannot mix evergreens products within the cases. An alternative to ordering in case amounts is our Direct Delivery Program.
No, you may order any amount of cases. Orders less than 6 cases are subject to a $10 per case surcharge and must be paid for when order is placed. All orders 6 cases and above, payment is due 30 days from the date of invoice. All cases are packed in full case amounts no matter how many cases you order.
While we do guarantee your fresh Christmas wreaths and evergreens will arrive within your chosen delivery time frame, we do not have the ability to guarantee a specific delivery date. When we get closer to the actual delivery time frame, we can usually narrow down the dates of estimated delivery within the window. We will also provide your nonprofit organization with tracking numbers. Once the delivery carriers receive your fresh wreaths and evergreens from us, you can use the tracking numbers to check with delivery carrier to see when they estimate their time of delivery to you will be.
Actually, there are no additional charges for shipping and handling in the 48 contiguous states! We strive to keep our pricing simple, so you do not need to calculate shipping and handling into our prices. We do have additional charges for shipping cases to Alaska or Hawaii. Please contact our office for up to date Alaska and Hawaii costs. We do not ship Gift Items to Alaska or Hawaii.
Your nonprofit organization can run the wreath fundraiser at any time in September and October that works for you. There are specific deadlines for placing your Final Order with us, as well as specific dates for each delivery time frame. Your nonprofit gets to choose the delivery time frame for your case evergreens.
For the 2013 Season;
Before Thanksgiving delivery, the Final Order is due 11/04/13, the delivery time frame is 11/19/13 – 11/27/13. After Thanksgiving delivery, the Final Order is due 11/12/13, the delivery time frame is 12/02/13 - 12/07/13. Most groups use the After Thanksgiving delivery time frame. We do not ship to the warm southern climates for the 'Before Thanksgiving' delivery time frame. The longevity of the Christmas wreaths and evergreens would be affected. All Gift Items will arrive directly to recipients within the first two weeks after Thanksgiving.
No, when ordering case products your nonprofit group can order any amount of the Gift Items. Your nonprofit group can sell zero or one or one hundred, any amount is a wonderful way for your church, school, scout group or other nonprofit organization to increase profits. Since the wreaths and evergreens that are Gift Items are sold, boxed and shipped individually, any amount can be ordered.
No, the Gift Items are each shipped individually and also separately from the case items.
Once your school, church, scout group or other nonprofit organization has made the decision to offer the wreath fundraiser and signed up with Sherwood Forest Farms for the season, your group is ready to start organizing their fundraiser. Here is a basic outline of the steps your group should follow to make this fundraising drive successful:
- Pick a time frame to run the fundraising drive that works with your nonprofit organization's calendar.
- Once your nonprofit organization receives the sales materials, review the basics of your drive with the sellers and set goals. Some groups pass out an informational sheet to each seller.
- Prepare for your fundraiser by passing out the sales materials to each seller and then at the kick off, send them out to sell to their friends, neighbors, and family. Don't forget, it's easiest on your nonprofit group if you collect the money at the time of sale.
- Make sure everyone is aware of the deadline for turning orders into the group. We suggest setting your deadline a few days ahead of the Sherwood Forest Farms deadline. This gives you a few days to organize your final order and also allows for straggling orders.
- Compile your orders and turn in your Final Order to Sherwood Forest Farms by the chosen deadline. Use the Final Order Form mailed to you in October or place your order online through our website. Keep track of your customer information when compiling your orders. They can be potential return customers next year!
- Give your nonprofit group a reminder when the time frame for delivery approaches. Some nonprofit organizations set up a phone tree for contacting members to help organize the delivery and get distribution going. Remember, the Gift Items arrive directly to recipients within the first two weeks after Thanksgiving.
- Once your evergreens cases arrive, double-check your order to make sure you have received the appropriate amount of cases. We recommend opening each case to let the fresh wreaths and evergreens breathe. In addition, please check your evergreens for quality because our items are 100% Guaranteed. Please call with any questions. We also recommend that you distribute the evergreens within 1-2 days. We discourage groups from storing the evergreens any longer.
- Once your evergreens are distributed, your group has finished the Christmas wreath fundraiser. Your invoice will be mailed to your nonprofit organization when your evergreens are shipped. Payment is due within 30 days. Remember, since your profit margin is what you charged over and above our wholesale cost to you, after paying the invoice, what you have left is your profit!
2B. The Direct Delivery Program
With this option of the wreath fundraiser your nonprofit group sells only the Gift Items. This can be a good option for smaller groups because the minimum order requirement for the Direct Delivery Program is only 10 individual items. Your nonprofit organization also would not have to order by case amounts since the Gift Items are sold, boxed and shipped individually. In addition, your nonprofit organization does not handle the evergreens because they are shipped directly to the recipients. Essentially, the Direct Delivery Program is a very easy, simple way to execute our Profit With Evergreens® fundraiser.
Yes, with the Direct Delivery Program your nonprofit group must order at least 10 individual Gift Items.
While we cannot guarantee an exact date of delivery, we can guarantee that each fresh wreath and evergreen product will arrive within the stated delivery time fram. All Gift Items arrive fresh to recipients within the first two weeks after Thanksgiving.
There are no additional charges for shipping and handling. We strive to keep our pricing simple. There is no need to calculate shipping and handling; it's already included in the wholesale cost to your nonprofit group.
Your nonprofit organization can run your wreath fundraiser at any time in September, October, and early November that works for you. Your nonprofit group must turn your Final Order and address labels in to Sherwood Forest Farms by the order deadline. The delivery time frame for the Gift Items is always within the first two weeks after Thanksgiving. For 2013 the Final Order deadline is November 15th, 2013.
Once your nonprofit organization has made the decision to offer the wreath fundraiser and signed up with Sherwood Forest Farms for the season, your group is ready to start organizing their fundraiser. Here is a basic outline of the steps your group should follow to make this Christmas wreath fundraiser successful:
- Pick a time frame to run the drive that works with your nonprofit organizations’s calendar.
- Once your nonprofit organization receives the sales materials, review the basics of your drive with the sellers and set goals. Some groups pass out an informational sheet to each seller.
- Prepare for your drive by passing out the sales materials to each seller and then at the kick off, send them out to sell. Remember to always collect the money at the time of sale because the item goes directly to the recipient.
- Make sure everyone is aware of the deadline for turning orders into the group. We suggest setting your deadline a few days ahead of the Sherwood Forest Farms deadline. This gives you a few days to organize your final order and also allows for straggling orders.
- Compile your orders and turn in your Final Order and addresses to Sherwood Forest Farms by the deadline. Use the Final Order Form mailed to you in October or place your order online through our website. Keep track of your customer information when compiling your orders. They can be potential returns customers next year!
- The wreaths and evergreens will arrive fresh to recipients the first two weeks after Thanksgiving. Remember, our products are 100% guaranteed to be fresh. If there are any issues with freshness, your group leader may call our office to receive either a replacement or a credit to the group.
- When the wreaths and evergreens are shipped, your invoice will be mailed to you. Payment terms are net 30 days. Your holiday fundraiser is now complete! Remember, since your profit margin is was you charged over and above our wholesale cost to you, after paying the invoice, what you have left if your profit!
2C. Both Wreath Fundraising Programs
No, your nonprofit organization can choose to offer any of the wreaths and evergreens they like. For instance, you can offer 1 or 2 products only or offer all but a few products. Also, your nonprofit group can choose to offer only the Case Items, only the Gift Items or offer both. Remember, if offering the Case Items, also offering the Gift Items is an easy way to increase your sales and profits with very little extra work. The choice is up to you, we want you to be able to choose the method that will work best for your nonprofit organization in the community you are selling.
Unfortunately, we cannot send Gift Items outside the United States.
Your nonprofit organization determines the prices you are going to charge for the wreaths and evergreens. The wholesale cost to your group is set and whatever your group charges over and above that cost is your profit. This gives your nonprofit group the opportunity to decide your profit margin, in addition to making sure the prices you charge are appropriate in your community.
Yes, we suggest making a spreadsheet to keep track of your customers' names, addresses, phone numbers and even email addresses. This not only makes it easier for the person running the wreath fundraiser to organize the distribution of the wreaths and evergreens, it also makes it easier to increase your customer base year after year. You will find you often have return customers. If you already have their contact information at your fingertips, you can easily contact these customers for repeat sales next year. This creates more time for making sales with new customers in future wreath fundraisers. Making the wreath fundraiser an annual fundraiser will grow your profits and create an established customer base.
Our evergreens are fresh from the Pacific Northwest and harvested by trimming trees that are farmed for commercial use. This trimming keeps the trees, evergreens and ecosystem in the area healthy. We do not use old growth trees, nor do we cut trees down.
3. How To Sign Up For The Wreath Fundraiser
Call us at 1-800-767-7778 or 360-357-8300 and we will walk you through signing up over the telephone. Or you can fill out the Program Sign Up Form and email, mail or fax it to our office.
We start sending out the sales materials at the end of August so your school, church, scout troop or other nonprofit organization will receive them by the beginning of September. If your nonprofit group signs up after the first of September, we ship your sales materials out the day after you sign up and your group receives them in about a week.
No, you are not obligated to place a Final Order with us if you sign up for the wreath fundraiser. If for some reason your nonprofit organization chooses not to use the Christmas wreath fundraiser, just call our office and let us know.
4. How To Place Your Final Order For Evergreens
Yes, your nonprofit organization can place your Final Order and enter the Gift Item addresses online. We have an ordering system on our website that you as the group leader can access with your Account Number and password. It is a very simple to use system that eases the process of ordering. As always, our customer service team is available on the phone and through email to assist. In addition, if entering the Gift Item addresses online, your group receives $0.35 off for every address entered.
In October, we will mail to you a Final Order form and instructions on how to place your Final Order. You can then place your Final Order online through our website or you can fill out your Final Order form and either mail or fax it to us. You cannot place the Final Order over the telephone, as there are agreements on the Final Order that need to be acknowledged and signed (this acknowledgement can be done online by accepting the terms and conditions).
Some things to remember before placing your Final Order; make sure your Case totals are correct and that you use standard numbers (not Roman numerals), make sure the number of addresses for Gift Items and the number of Gift Items ordered match, make sure you signed the Final Order form, and make sure all your pertinent contact and shipping information is correct on the Final Order form.
Yes, there is a Final Order form made specifically for each year and you must use the Final Order form we provide for you or place your order online. The reasons for this are first, the Final Order form is a contract and second, the information must be consistent for our data entry department.
You can enter the Gift Item addresses online through our website or you can mail the address labels we provided in the business reply envelope that came with your Final Order Form. If you enter the addresses online, you will receive a discount off your invoice of $0.35 for each address entered. Please do NOT fax the addresses to our office.
Once your Final Order is entered into our system, we will mail to you a Final Order Confirmation. Use this to double-check the information we have on your Final Order. If you have placed your Final Order online, you will receive your Final Order Confirmation via email. If you do not receive email confirmation that generally means you did not finish all the steps needed to place your order online. If you have faxed or mailed your Final Order to us, wait for your confirmation to come in the mail. Final Order Confirmation is always available at our website using your customer number and password. Log in and click on Enter Final Order. If your Final Order has been entered, it will state the date and time entered. Rest assured, we have a system in our office to make sure that no Final Orders fall through the cracks. If your nonprofit group has signed up with us and we have not received a Final Order from you, we will call you in time to place your Final Order.
No, the Final Order Confirmation is not an invoice. It is just to let you know that we have received your Final Order for your evergreens and give you a chance to double-check your order.
Your customers make checks payable to your nonprofit organization, and you send one check from your nonprofit organization as payment. Orders less than 6 cases are subject to a $10 per case surcharge and must be paid for when the Final Order is placed. For all other Final Orders, we mail an invoice to your group about the same time the greens are shipped out to you. Terms for payment are net 30 days. We accept payment in one of two ways, either a check from your organization (have your customers write their checks out to your group) or call our office at 1-800-767-7778 to make Visa / Mastercard payment after receiving your invoice.