A New Spin on Natural Laundry Detergent

The mission of Achieve Clean is simple – create the best natural laundry detergent with an even better cause behind it. However, we often get asked “how exactly does laundry detergent support people with disabilities”? It’s a great question and we have an answer, but first some quick background.

Achieving Financial Independence

Achieve Services is a non-profit based in Blaine, Minnesota that has served people with disabilities for over 50 years. In 2004 Achieve became a private non-profit and today we receive about 85 percent of our funding from state and federal sources with the rest coming from individual donations and corporate sponsors. Several years ago, the state of Minnesota began restructuring how programs like Achieve are supported which will result in a nearly 35 percent cut in our government funding in 2020. In order to make up for this shortfall we began exploring options to raise our own money including fundraising events, grant writing, and business development – the latter is what ultimately led to the creation of Achieve Clean Laundry Detergent.

Starting the Cycle

The mission behind Achieve Clean has always been to support people with disabilities and we do that in two ways: 1) by employing people with disabilities to work at Achieve Clean and 2) by investing 100 percent of revenue earned from laundry detergent sales to job programs that support people with disabilities.

Since we first opened all of the production of Achieve Clean has been performed by adults with development disabilities. This includes bottle filling, labeling, order fulfillment, and much more. All employees are paid minimum wage or higher and have used their experience at Achieve Clean to improve their skills and increase their independence.

Separating the Loads

When we say 100 percent of proceeds of Achieve Clean sales support job programs for people with disabilities, we mean exactly that. No supervisors at Achieve Clean receive a salary and any profits earned above and beyond production costs are invested directly into Achieve Services. 

A Cause with High-Efficiency

Achieve Services takes that money and invests it into support staff, job training, transportation, materials, and much more. Our latest audit reveals that 89 percent of our budget on programming with less than 10 cents for every dollar going to administrative. This is one of the best rates in the non-profit industry and ensures that supporters can trust that their donations are going to the right place. Not all laundry detergent can claim that. 

On an average day at Achieve Services:

• Over 200 adults with developmental disabilities receive support
• Our vehicles travel 1,683 miles
• Our program participants work at 24 community job sites
• We complete over 15,000 pieces of work
• We help every person we serve achieve greater independence

Please visit the Achieve Services website for more information about the cause that Achieve Clean supports. Now you know that every bottle of all-natural Achieve Clean Laundry Detergent you buy goes a long way to help people in your community work harder and accomplish more. Really Good Detergent, Even Better Cause.