Creative, handmade and well thought out gifts for Valentine’s Day always seem to be the most memorable.  I still have Riley’s first home made Valentine’s card and the pencil holder with little hearts drawn all over it that says “I love you”. 

This year, if you’re searching for the perfect Valentine’s gift, think thoughtfully and responsibly about the gift and who it’s going to.  If you have a chocolate lover on your hands for instance, give Fair Trade chocolates.  Equal Exchange (www.equalexchange.coop) offers organic fairly-traded gourmet chocolate bars that are out of this world.  The chocolate is a rich and delicious treat that supports small-scale farmers and their families. The bars combine famous Swiss standards in chocolate making with cocoa from the farmer co-operatives CONACADO, in the Dominican Republic, COCABO, in Panama, and CACVRA, in Peru; fairly traded organic sugar from co-operatives in Paraguay and Costa Rica; and fairly traded vanilla from Madagascar.  You can even learn about pairing chocolate with organic coffees and how to “taste” chocolate.  The perfect romantic evening I say.

And we can’t mention enough, give a reusable gift.  This month CynerGreen is offering two of it’s Red Stainless water bottles for only $16.00 – WOW, 2 for $16!  You can’t beat it.  Just type in the code LuvMyBottle when you check out.  This is a hidden gem and won’t be advertised except in our blog and on Twitter so enjoy!

Happy Valentine’s Day from the folks at CynerGreen! 

CynerGreen opens a first store and one of a kind “Green Boutique”

Recently, CynerGreen held a ribbon cutting and opened its first “green boutique” located just outside of Little Rock, in Cabot.  The store features the entire CynerGreen line of reusable stainless steel water bottles as well as green lifestyle products including Healthy Tap portable water filters, reusable shopping bags and Fair Trade products.  The store is the flagship boutique and first of its kind in the city of Cabot, state of Arkansas and surrounding states.  “It’s a place where consumers can easily find everyday, affordable options to living a greener, cleaner lifestyle” Danelle Hoffer, President and CEO of CynerGreen stated.  She continued to reinforce a message of eco-conscious living by stating, “Our goal with these easy to navigate stores, is to educate first about environment then offer products that help people to truly live and breathe greener lives.”  Outside the store, consumers can drop off their used cell phones and batteries to be recycled, and in return, receive a gift card to shop in the store. 

A unique feature of the first store is the construction methods used.  Everything used to build the store, warehouse and offices was recycled including materials, furniture and fixtures.  “Down to the shelving in the warhouse and the low flow toilet, we took all aspects into consideration” said Joe Hoffer, CFO of CynerGreen.  “The intention was to create the least impact on the environment and our surroundings.” It’s easily noticable from the moment you enter the store.  From stained concrete floors to open ceilings and the innovative use of natural light flowing into the office areas, all details were considered in this simple but trendy green concept store.

A special shopping experience awaits and includes a bit of environmental education, especially where kids are concerned.  In the CG Kidz section you’ll find the reusable water bottle designed by Riley Hoffer, the owners daughter and USGBC Youth Leader.  Posters stating facts and information on how to make a difference in your community can also be found.  Riley is on hand some afternoons to share about the message of environmental stewardship and facts about plastic water bottles. 

 See photos of the store here http://tinyurl.com/yjrupxo and watch for future additions, products and more to appear in the coming months. 

Interested in an exciting, first of its kind ”green boutique” franchise ?  Call us at 501.605.0197 for information.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact: Danelle Hoffer, CynerGreen

                            Danelle@cynergreen.com

                            501.605.0197

Sustainability made Simple

for Hotels and Resorts

August 25, 2009   Simple, effective, visible green programs are among the easiest ways to send a message of corporate social responsibility.  CynerGreen, the leading authority on sustainable hydration solutions in the hospitality industry, has launched Bottle Free™ programs designed for hotels and resorts. 

Becoming a Bottle Free™ hotel or resort is simple.  By eliminating the purchase and distribution of plastic water bottles in retail areas, guest rooms, conference services, back of the house, and replacing them with a reusable solution, a hotel can become certified Bottle Free™. 

This year alone, over 73 billion beverage cans and plastic water bottles have been tossed into landfills and incinerated.  And, it should be noted that only 12-14% of plastic water bottles are ever recycled according to the National Recycling Coalition.

Danelle Hoffer, President and CEO of CynerGreen shared the importance of the significance of this important program to the industry.   “When a hotel chooses to become Bottle Free™, it is making a contribution to the environment as well as to the health and wellness of its guests and employees for years to come.  Plastic water bottles continue to be a source of concern because of the amount of waste generated each year.   Additionally, the public is becoming more informed and is questioning BPA content in plastics and other epoxy resin lined bottles.  Obtaining Bottle Free™ certification will compliment your current green efforts and take them to the next level. “

CynerGreen’s proprietary Bottle Free™ solutions, pave the way for hotels, cities, communities, organizations, events and schools to eliminate bottled water from their environment.  The company offers a complete line of hydration products and services including:  adult and children’s reusable, stainless steel water bottles, HealthyTap™ natural portable water filters, reusable shopping bags, high volume hydration stations and certification programs, all exclusively offered by the CynerGreen and tailored to the hospitality and meetings industry.

To learn more about Bottle Free™ programs for your hotel or resort, call 501.605.0197 or visit www.cynergreen.com 

CynerGreen, LLC

A pioneering company based in Little Rock, Arkansas that manufactures, markets and sells eco-friendly, reusable, stainless steel water bottles and hydration solutions. Founded by business partners Joe and Danelle Hoffer in 2007, CynerGreen (www.cynergreen.com) is a leading brand in the stainless steel bottle category with customers including QVC, Toys R Us, Microsoft, Staples, Marriott, American Express Publishing, Gaylord Hotels and Terra Resort Group.  Their non-profit, founded at age 11 by Riley Hoffer, educates kids in grades K-5 on the environment.  In 2008 and 2009, the foundation has donated 2000 water bottles to schools in need of environmental programming support. (www.cgkidz.com)

The EPA has recorded the quality levels of drinking water by city in the US.  Info may be found at http://www.uc.edu/gissa/projects/drinkingwater/  

In order to provide an “on the go” filtration system for reusable water bottles, many of you know we’ve merged recently with the folks at Healthy Tap.   

Healthy Tap portable water filters are natural and organic, water improving pods that enhance the taste and quality of your tap water.  The product consists of a portable filter bag (about the size of a tea bag) that transforms your ordinary tap water into fresh tasting, scent neutral water.  Filters may also be used in juice, coffee, tea and wine to improve taste and pH values, allowing for better tasting beverages. 

It’s easy… Just toss, shake and drink your way to cleaner, safer water, without the hassle of a complicated water system. 

The one thing to remember is that the same tap water, is used in many cases for bottled water.  It’s important to support legislation that would ask the bottling companies to disclose what’s in their bottled water.  More importantly, it’s up to you to make good choices and  understand terms like BPA and what’s actually in the plastic you’re drinking from. 

Overall there’s alot to consider when choosing how to hydrate yourself with water these days.  As always, CynerGreen recommends a reusable bottle, to avoid landfill waste or even the need to recycle, and natural, organic HealthyTap filters to make your tap water clean, wherever you are.

Additional info may be found throughout the CynerGreen website or in our store at www.cynergreen.com/store

There has been a lot of concern in recent months over products that are manufactured overseas, especially in countries like China. Many materials manufactured overseas have been found to contain lead which has put into affect new laws restricting the production of many handmade items.

To ensure consumer confidence, CynerGreen has focused its efforts on providing a safe, solid, sustainable product which is closely monitored throughout the production process. In other words, as a family run business, we wouldn’t think of subjecting your family to anything we wouldn’t use ourselves.  Here’s how we do it…

Our manufacturing practices consist of constant monitoring in not only how the bottles are produced but in packaging, transportation, the environment in which they are used and promoted, while making sure the companies we work with provide a quality product all while educating the consumer.

CynerGreen maintains full control over our shipments at all levels providing:
• Pre-Shipment Inspections (PSI)
• Factory Audits (FA)
• Social Audits (SA)
• Initial Production Check (IPC)
• During Production Check (DUPRO)
• Container Loading Inspection (CLC)
• Laboratory Testing (LT)
• Production Monitoring (PM)

Here are a few additional details:
1. We employ both Asian and American Inspection teams that monitor manufacturing at all levels including testing.

2. We have two factories that produce our bottles, both ISO 9001 certified.

3. We inspect the factories quarterly to insure labor standards, product standards and to make sure that inspection teams are working at above average levels.

4. We try to only ship when a container is full, minimizing the impact of transportation as well as the exposure to any type of contamination in any way, from other products.

5. We ship by methods that will have the least impact on the environment.

6. We provide product testing for every shipment.  T

Here are additional tests we conduct as well…

- Lead Content in parts other than coating
- Lead Content in Paint
- 6 Phthalates Content
- 3 Phthalates Content

7. Packaging: CynerGreen works with each client on packaging needs. For retail products, we provide recycled packaging. We also offer egg crating and various types of packing methods to insure the least amount of material is used. All materials are recycled and/or recyclable.

As a company, CynerGreen recycles, monitors energy usage at all levels and offers a community outreach program for children, run by the founder’s 12 year old daughter, Riley. The program provides education and donates water bottles to elementary and middle school age children. We also encourage all team members to do more than just be involved in their communities.  We make sure everyone is given the time they need to do their part or whatever it is that they are most passionate about.  Look for more on our team members further down in previous postings on our blog.

For more information about our CG Kidz school outreach program, visit (www.cgkidz.com).

CynerGreen lives by their motto as a family run business “Buy Less Stuff” encouraging their message of the three R’s, Recycle, Reduce and Reuse.

Still need more info?  Write to Danelle Hoffer with your questions – danelle@cynergreen.com or give us a call anytime 501.605.0197.