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August 1, 2017After many years of assisting in the mission of our parish, the Building Bucks program is ending and is being replaced by AmazonSmile.
When Fr. McDaniel came as pastor in 2013, St. Philip’s underwent the customary audit from the Diocese, a standard procedure upon a change of pastors. Our broad results were excellent, except that we were advised we needed to account for all the overhead expenses in Building Bucks (such as labor costs and credit card fees) to determine if it was truly a profitable endeavor. During the last four years, staff and volunteers have worked hard to reduce costs and increase the profitability of Building Bucks. We’ve negotiated better deals with credit card companies, asked patrons to use cash or check, reduced our inventory to the more profitable companies, etc. Despite these efforts, Building Bucks is no longer producing the profit it once did, as you can see from the most recent numbers:
By the Numbers
From January through June of 2017, $306,055.00 of Building Bucks were sold, from which the parish received $14,022.28 (reflecting the discount at which the parish originally purchased the cards). From this “profit”, expenses of $10,171.68 still had to be deducted. The net profit was only $4,919.90, just 1.6% of gross sales.
The Concerns:
1. We spent over $5,100 in labor costs, but raised an amount smaller than that. This is not a prudent use of parish resources.
2. The return (1.6%) is not a meaningful return on an investment of over $300,000. We think we can do better.
3. Gift cards are not the novelty they once were; they can be purchased at every grocery store check-out and in a broad selection we cannot carry.
Given these concerns, the Finance Council has recommended to Fr. McDaniel that the Building Bucks program be ended.
Thank You for Supporting Building Bucks
We are most grateful to the volunteers who made Building Bucks the success it was in the past. And a big thanks to our patrons, whose purchases made a meaningful difference to our parish.
There’s a New Way to Shop with Stewardship in Mind
To replace Building Bucks, we have introduced AmazonSmile. Simply designate St. Philip the Apostle as your AmazonSmile charity and a portion of your purchases will be automatically donated to the parish. It requires no staff or volunteer time, and you get the same prices and shopping experience as you would on the normal Amazon site.
Click here to get started!