Hownd®, a customer foot traffic and revenue-generation platform for local brick and mortar businesses that has generated nearly $3 million in immediate revenue for merchants throughout the country during the pandemic, has created a partnership with the City of Winter Garden, Florida that’s also supported by the West Orange Chamber of Commerce, the Orange Observer Group and Winter Garden Village at Fowler Groves. The Hownd partnership is part of the city’s “Love Local” program designed to support its businesses during the pandemic by stimulating awareness and increasing customer foot traffic.

In an effort to continue supporting small businesses as they navigate the impacts of COVID-19, the city has created a sponsorship fund that covers the cost of Hownd’s Results-Delivered Pricing fee it normally charges businesses directly when the company brings them paying customers. Winter Garden-based brick and mortar businesses can sign up for Hownd with zero risk since the city is paying this fee and because Hownd does not charge a set-up fee or require a monthly subscription.

The platform, known as Hownd, is designed for local brick-and-mortar businesses to generate immediate cash sales and future foot traffic as businesses work to recover from the impacts of the pandemic. The campaign, dubbed “Love Local,” invites merchants to join the platform in order to offer customers the opportunity to purchase support vouchers, much like digital gift cards, and take advantage of promotional offers from local businesses.

The partnership is structured on a first-come, first-served basis for Winter Garden merchants, and fees will be covered by the city until the sponsorship fund is depleted, which is contingent on how many businesses sign up and how many customers Hownd brings them.

Through Hownd, businesses can make their Gift Cards, Buy Now’s, Value-Add Packages, Vouchers, Coupons, and other promotional offers available to nearby consumers through the free MyHownd® mobile app, a consumer website developed specifically for Winter Garden, as well as through email and a business’s own website and Facebook page. The merchant sign-up process is simple and fast, and their first offer can be available to nearby consumers in less than 48 hours.

Winter Garden businesses can learn more about the Hownd program by visiting hownd.com/Winter-Garden-FL where they can also sign up or request more information. They can also learn more on the city’s website at cwgdn.com/Hownd. Hownd has a local presence in Winter Garden, so a representative is available to meet one on one with businesses. Interested businesses through this program can download the MyHownd®mobile app from their favorite app store.

The partnership with Winter Garden is the latest in a series of similar successful economic development partnerships formed by Hownd in a number of cities to help local businesses survive the pandemic and accelerate customer sales and revenue.

The City’s community partners, The West Orange Chamber, the Orange Observer, and the Winter Garden Village will help promote this opportunity to the business community. According to Stina D’Uva, President/CEO of the West Orange Chamber, “This free program is one more way the City is assisting businesses that are struggling due to closures, reduced sales, and challenges created by COVID-19.”

“As a small business ourselves, we have always been champions of small businesses, and believe their presence and success is what makes West Orange a special place to live,” said Observer Media Group Editor and Publisher Michael Eng. “We are delighted that the city of Winter Garden continues to invest into its small businesses.”

The Winter Garden Village at Fowler Groves represents over one million square feet of shopping. It is the largest concentration of shopping in all of West Orange County. “We are delighted to bring this free program forward to our tenants in the hopes it will increase sales for them during this difficult time,” said Kerri Ryan, Senior Regional Property Manager for SITE Centers.

“Winter Garden is a strong community on so many levels, including a loyal base of residents and people from other areas who love our way of life and support our local businesses,” explains Winter Garden City Manager Mike Bollhoefer. “The partnership with Hownd enables us to sustain this by providing residents and nearby consumers an easy way to do so. We’re

glad that our city government is in a financial position to be able to offset the costs for our local merchants to market their businesses and attract more customers and revenue through this innovative Love Local partnership.”

“Our partnership with Winter Garden is certainly significant for Hownd as it enables us to continue expanding our support for local brick and mortar businesses during the pandemic,” explains Hownd CEO Brandon Willey, “But, more importantly, it’s a big step forward for the city’s merchants that will benefit from our ability to bring them more customers and more revenue immediately and over time without any risk since Winter Garden is covering the fee. It’s refreshing to see Winter Garden join the ranks of a growing number of forward-thinking economic development organizations and their community partners leading the way in identifying, implementing, and fully supporting innovative approaches to stimulate local business survival and growth.” 

ABOUT THE CITY OF WINTER GARDEN

The City of Winter Garden is a municipality with a city population of 48,000 and an employment base of 20,000 that was incorporated in 1908. The City of Winter Garden is located on the southern shore of Lake Apopka, 20 minutes west of Orlando in Orange County. Winter Garden is considered one of the most desirable places to live in Central Florida because of its small town charm and unique quality of life. The City of Winter Garden City Hall is located at 300 W. Plant Street, Winter Garden, FL 34787. To learn more about the City of Winter Garden, please visit www.cwgnd.com.