Gro-Vert has YouTube demonstration of mounting wall planters.

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GOING GLOBAL: Local Non-Profit and Businesses Team Up to Ship Planters

November 17, 2013
By: Dave Rogers

New Dimensions, F.P. Horak, Landaal Packaging and A Tree's New Home are working together to ship Bright Green Living Wall Planters across the globe to places like the Netherlands, Kuwait, Japan, Australia and Ireland.

This relationship formed when New Dimensions, a vocational training center for adults with disabilities, began assembling and shrink-wrapping the beautiful wood planters that are the focus of the Grovert product line.

The effort to keep the work local was spearheaded by Jim Rizzo and Dave Billings of Bright Green as well as Brian Gainsforth from New Dimensions.

"We see a substantial cost savings in keeping the work local," said Rizzo.

Mike Loyer, a local carpenter and owner of A Tree's New Home, builds many of the decorative frames, and F. P. Horak prints the multi-color labels and planting instructions.

The moisture mats, part of the proprietary watering system, are placed into the frames at New Dimensions by individuals with developmental disabilities, giving them a job that provides both an income and training in a production environment.

Workers from New Dimensions with other barriers to employment, like traumatic brain injuries and severe mental illness, run the Textwrap 1810 to shrink-wrap the product and Landaal Packaging provides the corrugated boxes used for shipment.

"We keep a map of the world on the wall with pins in it marking the countries where we've shipped," said Gainsforth. "We all work together to provide a quality product and the map gives our workers a sense of pride in being part of the business community."

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