Darlington company is finalist for U.S. Chamber of Commerce honor
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has announced Covered in Cotton from Darlington as one of the finalists for its annual Dream Big Awards. The awards, presented by Spectrum Reach with support from MetLife and Staples Connect, celebrate the achievements of small businesses and honor their contributions to America’s economic growth. This year’s 27 finalists were chosen from a record-setting more than 1,000 applications submitted from small businesses across the country. “This year small businesses have continued facing every obstacle head-on, taking risks, working hard, and dreaming big in the face of ongoing challenges and uncertainty,” said Tom Sullivan, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Vice President of Small Business Policy. “Small businesses are a critical and vibrant sector of the U.S. economy, and the U.S. Chamber is proud to celebrate the very best in American small business through our Dream Big Awards.” The Dream Big Awards program includes nine different Business Achievement Awards to recognize the excellence of leading businesses in each of the following categories: community support and leadership, emerging, green/sustainable, minority-owned, LGBTQ-owned, veteran-owned, woman-owned, young entrepreneur, and small business of the year. The Emerging Business Award recognizes the success of one small business and honors its contributions to the growth and diversity of the American economy. This award recognizes a start-up company that has attained outstanding business achievement with fewer than 25 employees and 1-3 years of full-time operation. “It is such an honor to be chosen as a finalist in the Dream Big Awards,” said Covered in Cotton founder Tracy Woodard. “The majority of cotton grown in our country is exported across the globe, and it’s rare to find a cotton product that has been grown and made here in the USA. “In spite of this fact, Covered in Cotton’s mission is to produce quality cotton products that are grown and crafted in the USA, and we make it a priority to not only invest in American businesses and families, but also give back to our communities. We can trace the cotton used in our products directly back to not just the field it was grown in, but also through each local business we partner with along its journey to a finished product. We want to promote the high quality and sustainability of American cotton, as well as the hardworking American companies that continue our country’s heritage of quality textiles.” Award winners will be announced at the virtual Dream Big Awards program, part of the Big Week for Small Business virtual event, Oct. 21. Registration is open to the public at: https://events.uschamber.com/bigweekforsmallbusiness. Covered in Cotton cultivates and crafts 100 percent locally grown cotton home goods made exclusively from the highest quality cotton grown on their family’s third generation farm (Woodard Farms) in Darlington. Covered in Cotton partners with locally-owned businesses throughout North and South Carolina to craft their raw cotton into yarn, which is then woven into luxury collections of hand towels, baby blankets and award-winning throw blankets. Their “Cotton with a Cause” mission was born from their own family’s story of heartbreak and hope, and now fuels their heart to donate one throw for every 10 sold to a children’s hospital; and one baby blanket for every 10 sold to a family ministry in South Carolina. Covered in Cotton has donated over 630 throws to five S.C. hospitals and 65 baby blankets to two S.C. family organizations. Find more of their story at www.coveredincotton.com.