Wow what an amazing week! Years of work came to fruition last Tuesday with our launch.We had an incredible amount of support from literally the moment we launched. The first day our site crashed because the server couldn’t handle the high traffic! We can’t thank you guys enough for you support and the encouragement that we are on to something huge. We’re working feverishly to bring you the best, most eco-friendly, and socially conscious products out there. Stay tuned as it’s only getting better

While the launch was definitely the most amazing thing about last week (and maybe ever), a TON of other things have been in the works to move this social entrepreneurship industry forward. Here’s an update on what we’ve been up to and are putting together for the future:

Entrepreneurs Changing the World- This event took place on our launch day at USC and went AWESOME. Our fearless leader and CEO Mr. Brent Freeman gave an amazing speech on his own inspirations to enter into social entrepreneurship as well as giving some advice to the audience on how they can start their own venture! The rest of the panel did incredible as well.

Social Summit 2010: New Orleans- This was yet another speaking engagement that took place on the very same day as our launch! Our Co-Founder Nick Reder spoke sharing his insight on social entrepreneurship as well as how Roozt can help small ventures step it up by getting them more sales, exposure, and branding. Great speech from Nick (and the video is coming soon)!

Inspire U-  Roozt is on the search for the most inspiring company, plain and simple. If you think you know of the most inspiring company (even if it’s yours) you should let us know! Email Christina@roozt.com and the winning company with receive a COMPLETE business package to get off and running as a social entrepreneurship venture. This includes free Incorporation or LLC documents, free website starter kit, free logo design, free Quickbooks, free credit card processing, and free virtual phone lines. Not only that, but the winning company will also be featured as a Roozt Daily Deal, keeping all the profits!

Campus Ambassadors- We love college students. The majority of the Roozt team is either in college or fresh out. That said, we want to give college students the tools to change the world through business! This partner style internship is everything you could want as a college student: hands on, interactive, highly educational and maybe even a chance to be a full time member of the Roozt team! We’re growing rapidly and looking for those with the right mindset to help us take Roozt to the next level from the beginning. If you want in, hit up Christina@roozt.com and let her know you want to become a professional Roozter!

That’s it for now. Big things coming up! If you haven’t signed up for the newsletter do it now to get info on all the upcoming causes and deals!

-The Roozt Team

HUGE news coming today from the Roozt Team!

In the social entrepreneurship realm there’s an event we’ve been waiting for for a while now: the “Entrepreneurs Changing the World” event hosted by StartingBloc LA. This event being held at USC on September 28 is making BIG waves in our industry and the fact that it’s being put together by the folks at StartingBloc guarantees it will be a must-attend event for the LA crowd. We were already excited for this event but recent news made the Roozt Team twice as excited…. Our CEO Brent Freeman just confirmed a speaking and panel position!! The already amazing panel will now be getting the expertise of our Chief Roozter.

Here’s a quick intro to the speakers of “Entrepreneurs Changing the World”:

Adlai Wertman

Founding Director of USC Society and Business Lab

-USC has some of the top Business and Entrepreneurship programs in the nation. Adlai is a great speaker.

Jonathan Greenblatt

Founder of Ethos Water and Our Good Works, UCLA Lecturer

-The first thing you see on the Ethos site is “Our mission helping children get clean water”. This is achieved through a $0.05 donation per water purchased. Ethos was acquired by Starbucks in 2005 who has donated over $10 million to the mission of getting children clean water. We’re super excited to hear from Jonathan Greenblatt! Check out Ethos Water here

Elizabeth Amini

Founder & CEO of Anti-Aging Games and Brighter World Consulting

-Anti-Aging Games really is an amazing program. The site is a system of games that exercise the mind in a way that keeps it at peak performance. With a list of contributors ranging from the Atari founder to Harvard PHD’s to Alzheimer’s and Dementia specialists, the Anti-Aging Games  system is more than capable. Check out the Anti-Aging Games system here and get your brain in shape!

Brent Freeman

Founder and CEO of Roozt.com, Executive Board Member of Trojan CEO Network

-Last but not least the fearless leader of Roozt! The team was already planning to attend the event but with Brent as a speaker we’re twice as excited! Working with hundreds of vendors, Roozt is not only at the forefront of the industry, but also bringing smaller companies into the public spotlight to join the movement. Roozt’s goal is to make entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship one in the same: that the business climate could make socially responsible behavior a standard and not an afterthought. Through the boosting of our vendor’s sales and exposure, we are giving the world a chance to find the responsible products they can’t find anywhere else. Brent has been talking about how proud of his Alma Mater he is for stepping out and hosting an event like “Entrepreneurs Changing the World”. USC has been respected in the business community for a long time but having them be at the forefront social entrepreneurship by hosting events is awesome!

Get more info on the event here and don’t forget to say hi to the Roozt team while you’re there!

Entrepreneurs Changing the World is coming up on September 28 so make sure to register here early!

Today I had the distinct pleasure of talking with Ethan Zohn, Survivor Africa Champion, Philanthropist, Motivational Speaker, and most recently, Cancer survivor. Ethan may be one of the most inspirational people I have met in a long time. We connected today to talk about collaboration between Roozt and an inspiring non-profit that he founded called Grassroot Soccer, a youth focused organization that uses the power of soccer to teach HIV / AIDS education to children in Africa. We are in talks of partnering with Grassroots Soccer to sell their T-Shirts on Roozt as well as make them a beneficiary of our customer’s donations. I encourage you all to check out the amazing work they are doing in their video and witness how they have harnessed something seemingly unrelated to a massive global epidemic and used its influence to create positive change in the world.

Ethan Zohn (left) & Kids from Grassroots Soccer

What further inspired me was that just today Ethan announced the Survivor Stand Up To Cancer initiative where they are using one of the worlds most popular TV shows to help raise money for direct cancer research so we can one day soon find a cure for this devastating disease. Ethan tells his story here, and it is a powerful one that you should all read…

Ethan Zohn is shining example of how one person, even when faced with the biggest challenge of his life, can stand up and make a difference in the world. He is a prime example that harnessing the power of business, entertainment, and sports to make a difference in the world is not only a great idea, but an inspiring reality.

I look forward to the opportunity for Roozt, our team members, and our supporters to  be able to collaborate with Ethan, Grassroot Soccer, and the StandUpToCancer initiative. Thank you for your amazing work Ethan!

Brent Freeman, Founder / CEO of Roozt.com

What’s up guys & gals,

Happy Monday! While your brain shifts back into work mode (we know it’s hard with all this awesome summer weather), we thought it would be a good time to check in and say hey, and welcome you once again to the ROOZT community!

So, while we’re running around like crazy getting everything ready for the big launch, we wanted to give you a sneak peak of what’s coming down the line in the next few weeks…

*** iPad Sweepstakes: Because who doesn’t love free stuff? To help spread the word about ROOZT and thank you guys for all your support, we will be giving away one free, brand-spankin’-new iPad! All of you who signed up early are entered once, but if you click the link below to refer your friends, for every 5 people you tell, you’ll get another entry into the sweepstakes. The more you get the word out, the more chances you’ll have to win! If you haven’t signed up yet, well, get on it!

Click below to refer friends!
ROOZT.com Free iPad Sweepstakes!

*** ChessBoxing 4 Charity: We’ve teamed up with The Tiziano Project (an incredible non-profit organization that empowers journalists in war-torn countries. Check them out if you have some time, they’ll blow you away) for the first ever ChessBoxing 4 Charity event. Crazy, right? ChessBoxing is a true test of brains versus brawn: a new sport that makes competitors alternate rounds of boxing with speed chess…it sounds easy, until you have to try strategizing your next chess move after getting punched in the face repeatedly by your opponent. The night will feature Miss Malibu vs. Miss Hollywood (yes, we’re serious) and Andrew “The Fightin’ Philanthropist” McGregor vs. John Rude, with our good buddy Tower (of American Gladiators) serving as MC. You can watch videos of ChessBoxing featured on Carson Daly, The Colbert Report, ESPN, and others here.

The event will be held on September 23rd at Les Deux nightclub in Hollywood, California. Tickets are $15 pre-sale and $20 at the door, with all proceeds going straight to The Tiziano Project. If you’re in the area, please check it out! We promise it’ll be a great evening, and you’ll be doing your part to support an incredibly worthwhile cause. You can learn more about the event and pre-order your tickets here: http://roozt.com/chessboxing

*** Keep In Touch: Hit up our Facebook page and Twitter! We’re constantly updating both with hot news, fresh contests and sweepstakes, blogs, and other stuff to keep you in the loop. Every now and again, we’ll just be giving stuff away to our followers, so don’t miss out! Not to mention, it’s a great way to let us know what you think. Want to see eco-friendly surfboard deals, or clothing from companies that support humanitarian initiatives? Shoot us a message! And who knows, you might even make a few new like-minded friends while you’re there.

We’re launching in August, and have hundreds of cool vendors lining up left and right. For example, just this week Sole Bicycles hopped on board, and will be offering their awesome roadbikes at insane discounts. One of our biggest pledges at ROOZT is to individually tailor your deals to what you want. For example, if you’re a dude, we won’t waste your daily alert on a mani/pedi package like some other deal sites (cough cough). The more you visit our site, the more we’ll have an idea of what you want.

Additionally, Auren Kaplan of The Social Enterprise Exchange recently wrote an amazing article on Roozt.com, that we encourage you to check out in your free time. It paints a great picture of what we’re all about and where we’re going…

Think that’s it for this time around. Don’t forget to keep checking back for the latest updates on featured products, contests, and more of our inspiring partners. All of us at ROOZT are super pumped about everything going on in the next few weeks, and we hope you are too! We’ll talk to you soon and in the meantime we’ll be hard at work getting you great deals from inspiring companies…

Much love,

CG for the ROOZT.com Team

What’s up boys and girls,

I wanted to check in and let you know how life has been around the Roozt office. And life has been NUTS. We have interns going without sleep they’re so excited, CEOs glued to the phone, nationwide partnerships being established with amazing charities, and a ton of vendors and supporters ready to work together! Where are we now specifically? Here’s an overview:

-Finalizing deals with a ton of vendors

-Organizing a charity we’re putting on in the next couple months (more on that as things get finalized. We’re REALLY stoked)

-Putting together several potential amazing partnerships that could make a huge impact on what we’re trying to do

and…

-Organizing the wave of email sign ups for our launch! That means you guys! Thanks for the support!

We love you all and hope you’re as excited about our upcoming launch as we are

Salud,

The Roozt Team

If you haven’t signed up for our deal of the day yet, check it out
Any questions you guys have, feel free to ask in the comments or to our twitter: twitter.com/rooztdeals