Ditto Upscale Retail's sole mission is to contribute funding to offset tuition costs for all students attending Holland Christian Schools and Zeeland Christian School. Since the resale shop's inception in 2004, the store has donated some $2 million, says Henry Dykema, one of Ditto's three managers.Customers can spend hours looking over the store's 32,000-square-foot showroom of gently used furniture, lamps, home décor items, toys, electronics, year-round Christmas Corner and even the occasional stove or refrigerator. In addition, Ditto houses fashions for men, women and children sporting designer labels, which might include Aéropostale, Versace, Talbots or Chico's on any given day. "We are upscale, which means everything is of good quality," Dykema says. "If there are any tears or stains in the clothing, we don't put it out, and the furniture has to all be in good condition. Right now, the proceeds from the store are supporting about 2,400 children."Most clothing for adults is $4 per item, Dykema says, with the exception of the designer items which the store prices individually. Junior sizes run about $3, children's clothing is around $2 and infant togs are about a dollar each. The shop moved to its current location (571 E. 8th St., Holland) from Waverly and 24th St. for more space and visibility. Dykema says that has paid off. "Sometimes we might have as many as 50 customers in the store," he says. Except for the three managers and a handful of high school students who work after school, Dykema says all the workers are volunteers, and all items except mattresses and box springs are donated. That leaves more money available for the schools. Store hours are Mon. - Fri. 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Source: Henry Dykema, Ditto Upscale RetailWriter: Deborah Johnson Wood, Development News Editor

Some of the biggest names in the West Michigan business scene shared their insights on the tricky dynamics of family-owned businesses. According to excerpts from MLive: The scions of some of West Michigan's biggest family-owned businesses gathered Friday to share some of their secrets with scholars from around the world. The international Family Enterprise Research Conference was sponsored by the Family Owned Business Institute in the Seidman College of Business at Grand Valley State University. The organization aims to provide a resource to family-owned businesses. You can read the entire story here:

An article on Mlive.com says that based on the success of its Holland call center, NOVO 1 could be considering a second call center in West Michigan. According to excerpts from the story:NOVO 1 CEO Mary Murcott said the Dallas-based customer contact company is looking for a site for a second call center in West Michigan. In Holland to speak at a Chamber of Commerce meeting this morning, Murcott said the Holland NOVO 1 call center at 1351 Waverly Rd. opened in 2010 is "performing well beyond first year expectations" and receiving high marks from clients. Read the complete story here.

The Grand Rapids Community Foundation (GRCF) is ready to announce a second round of grants to support the creation of "encore teams," an innovative concept that is meant to encourage older adults to volunteer through ten $5,000 grants. According to Kate Luckert-Schmid, program director, the goal of this program is to "try to create new opportunities for adults to use their talents and experience to assist nonprofits." Each nonprofit that is awarded the grant has autonomy on how they use the money, as long as it focuses on creating new ways for baby boomers to get engaged as volunteers. Lukcert-Schmid adds that this particular demographic (50+) has many compelling reasons for the special focus, one being that in Kent County, this age-group is growing. Besides the sheer size of this particular demographic, there is also a recognition of the talents and experience these individuals can bring to a nonprofit organization. To learn more about this opportunity or to apply for funding, you can click here. Source: Kate Luckert-Schmid, Grand Rapids Community Foundation Writer: John Rumery, Innovation and Jobs Editor

Garrick Pohl's new venture has two simple precepts: 1) help people earn money and 2) help businesses save money. Zipments is a new online venture that offers individuals the opportunity to earn money by becoming local couriers for a wide variety of products that need to be delivered quickly, locally and inexpensively.   For participating businesses, Zipments will provide the an alternative for more expensive same day/next day courier and delivery services in their local market. According to Laurie Pecherski, director of sales and marketing, the idea came from Pohl's observation of the number of people he knew that were busy, but also needed part-time jobs that were time-flexible.   With Zipments, individuals fill out an online application and then have the opportunity to bid on deliveries that are posted by businesses. The business then selects the courier they want to handle the transactions. Similar to auction services, couriers will be "rated" on their performance. This "reputation" feature will then assist businesses in their bid selection. Starting with a team of five individuals in West Michigan, Zipments is targeting a national market. Initial marketing efforts will focus on direct mail, public relations, sales promotions and social media word-of-mouth. To learn more about Zipments, you can visit their website here. Source: Laura Pecherski, Zipments Writer: John Rumery, Innovation and Jobs Editor

This week, the guys behind the foodie madness at Grand Rapids Grub launched the next best thing to tipping a few at a Michigan microbrewery. MittenBrew.com takes readers on virtual visits to the state's breweries and samples their wares via articles and stories written by professional writers who have a passion for writing about, and drinking, good beer. The articles, along with photographs of the breweries, their brews and their people, tell the stories of the breweries. Video tours give folks a taste of different brew houses, fermenting rooms and more, giving readers a front row seat to what's happening behind the scenes. Future plans for the site include featuring beer recipes for home brewers and brewing tips from brew masters. Bryan Esler, Rob Kirkbride and Christopher Epplett, co-owners of grgrub.com and now MittenBrew, all have regular day jobs and are also journalists with experience writing for publications like The Grand Rapids Press, The Grand Haven Tribune and The Monday Morning Quarterback. "We couldn't find a single beer website specifically about Michigan breweries and written by people who have journalism experience," says Chris Epplett. "We wanted to bring something to it in a professional manner as writers and editors. We love beer and we also have the abilities to write about it in a professional way and a journalistically correct way, which is different than just a blog."MittenBrew has about five people working as writers, Epplett says, three in West Michigan, and others covering Traverse City, Ann Arbor and Lansing. While the first articles are about Grand Rapids and West Michigan breweries, future articles will take readers throughout the state, where Epplett says there are over 60 breweries to-date. GRgrub.com launched in July 2009 and now has some 1,500 unique visitors a week and over 1,100 Facebook fans, Epplett says. In its first two days, MittenBrew attracted about 300 visitors. "There really is a great respect for the state of Michigan and the beers that we brew, like Bell's Oberon and Founders, which are really growing around the world," Epplett says. "We have everything from a lot of bitterness to a lot of hops. The reputation for Michigan breweries is really growing outside the U.S. We want to do whatever we can to show our enthusiasm for it, as well."Source: Christopher Epplett, MittenBrew and Grand Rapids GrubWriter: Deborah Johnson Wood, Development News Editor

B & B Heating and Cooling started 10 years ago as two guys working out of cardboard boxes from the back of a truck, installing and repairing traditional heating and cooling systems. Today, company leaders say the firm is the third largest energy efficient geothermal WaterFurnace dealer in West Michigan.Four years ago, B & B decided to diversify from offering just traditional heating and cooling methods by adding the geothermal WaterFurnace line and starting a second company, West Michigan Geothermal. Since then, the company has grown 25 percent, stabilized its workforce at 18 employees, has 10 trucks on the road and moved into a new 8,000-square-foot facility in Sparta.The new building, heated and cooled by two geothermal units, serves as a showplace where both residential and commercial customers can experience the energy efficient systems first-hand. "The demand for renewable energy is on the rise, and not just with new construction. If you have LP or fuel oil, the demand is way up because these geothermal systems run at about 450- to 500-percent efficiency," says Brad Delaney, co-owner with Bill Schriver. "We're seeing energy bills that were about $4,000 a year on a 2,000-square-foot house, and we're dropping the bills to $1,500 to $1,600 per year."Delaney says that the systems run at 42 degrees for air conditioning and blow heat at 92 degrees, compared to a standard furnace, which blows about 120 to 130 degrees. West Michigan Geothermal designs and installs both open loop systems which use well water, and closed-loop systems which use a glycol solution that loops through a system of underground pipes. Source: Brad Delaney, West Michigan Geothermal and B & B Heating and Cooling; Suzette Garvey, Simply Genuine CommunicationsWriter: Deborah Johnson Wood, Development News Editor

West Side merchants are confident that a hyperlocal "buy West Side" campaign will boost exposure for many of their retailers. According to excerpts from MLive: They are launching LiveWest, an effort to encourage people to spend as many as their dollars as possible on the West Side in the month of May. If Kyle Van Strien needs an appliance, he'll head to Nawara Bros. on West Fulton Street. For his groceries? Ralph's Market, Parkside Foods and Duthler's should have what he needs, not to mention the specialty meat shops or Mexican grocers. You can read the complete story here.