Interested in starting an affiliate?

Are you looking to bring a Victory Gardens affiliate to a community near you?

If you do not have a Victory Gardens  location near you and you are interested in learning more about starting one, please be sure to read about our affiliate model below.

 

What is an affiliate?

An affiliate is a community-level non-profit that serves a specific area and fulfills the Victory Gardens mission locally. Each affiliate is independent and responsible for its own fundraising efforts, programs, partner relationships, volunteers and so on.

Affiliates are formed by individuals or an organization who want to address food insecurity communities. Having identified regional needs and resources, they determined that Victory Gardens programs would benefit their areas.

What is Victory Gardens International?

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The International office oversees and provides support to our affiliate network.  International also focuses on strengthening and promoting the Victory Gardens brand across the world, including developing relationships with corporations, media and other sponsors.

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What should you consider before starting an affiliate?

Starting a Victory Gardens is an exciting and rewarding experience but also a serious endeavor.  You would become a valued member of an internationally-renowned non-profit organization, gaining access to a wide variety of resources, expertise and support from Victory Gardens International and affiliates around the world.

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A few things to bear in mind as you consider whether to pursue this project further:

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• You must be passionate and committed to our mission.

• Opening an affiliate requires large amounts of time and energy, something for which founders must be prepared.

• Starting a non-profit also requires funding.  The International office does not provide seed money, we can only offer equipment estimates of what local expenses might be for a new affiliate; budgets vary based on local communities, resources and currencies.

• You must have the ability to carry out different elements of the start-up process including legal, financial and fundraising tasks.

• Familiarizing yourself with the affiliate locations nearest you–and any other similar organizations in your community–is important.  We will consider your proximity to other affiliates and the size of the population you wish to serve.

• You will need to obtain equipment and a suitable space for your affiliate, secure funding from a diverse array of sources to cover costs, recruit a reliable board of directors and volunteers, build relationships with community partners, generate coverage in the press, establish accounting and gardening space, launch programs and much, much more

 

Benefits and responsibilities

Affiliates enjoy many advantages as part of our network yet also have a number of shared responsibilities.

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All affiliates:

• are separately incorporated non-profits that have their own boards of directors and raise their own funds. Affiliates are independent from each other and from Victory Gardens International;

• provide healthy food access, food skills, education and engagement in low-wealth communities;

• are members of Victory Gardens International and therefore must pay an annual licensing fee of $599 USD and abide by trademark and membership agreements and policy guides; and

• have the right to use the name “Victory Gardens” as approved by Victory Gardens International.

 

There are significant benefits to being part of the Victory Gardens International network:

• Joining Victory Gardens means becoming aligned with a well-respected non-profit that has established an excellent reputation among the communities we serve, volunteers, donors and the corporate community.

• You will be part of a growing international organization and will have an identity—a logo, brand and mission—that is both recognized and esteemed throughout the world.

• Membership—and the benefits associated with it—is free.  Affiliates pay only a licensing fee each year.

• You will have access to—and can benefit from—materials, systems, best practices and programs that have proven successful in other locations.

• Colleagues from affiliates around the world will support you and lend their expertise and experience any time that you need assistance.

• You will have free space on the highly visible www.growwthvictory.org website. 

• Cause-marketing campaigns with prominent and well-known companies benefit all affiliates by increasing awareness about the organization.

• Affiliates also can leverage the relationships that Victory Gardens International builds with national and international corporations to establish partnerships on the local level.

• Victory Gardens International hosts a leadership conference that provides the opportunity for affiliates from around the world to network with each other and to share information and ideas.

• Additional resources—databases, internal communication portals—are available to affiliates to encourage communication among the network and the sharing of best practices.

• You will be supported by a full-time professional staff at Victory Gardens International in South Carolina, people with extensive experience in fundraising, public relations, non-profit management, agribusiness, nutrition and law. We are here for the explicit purpose of supporting our affiliates and strengthening the Victory Gardens brand.