Wednesday, September 1, 2010

SocialVest Combines Shopping, Charity

Los Angeles- and Atlanta-based SocialVest, a developer of a caused-driven shopping site, said today that it has launched a new service which allows users to raise and give money to non-profit organizations, through shopping. The startup, which has its team split between Atlanta and Los Angeles, said it will rebate 1 percent to 15 percent of purchases made by its users with participating retailers to a "Giving Account", which users can then redirect to the non-profit of their choice. The firm said it has over 500 retailers participating in the program, and more than 1.5 million registered non-profit organizations users can contribute to. Socialvest asks users to link their credit card to the service, shop at both online and offline retailers, and give back any money they've earned to various charities. The firm is headed by Adam Ross, who is based in Atlanta, with marketing and business development in Los Angeles. The firm is backed by un-named angel investors from New York.

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