Did you know that March 20th is the International Day of Happiness?
I recently sat down with Calvin Johnson, founder and CEO of Lykki Office Supplies (Fittingly, Lykki is Danish for ‘happiness’) and asked him what happiness means to him. His response was that “Happiness is...Making a positive impact in the lives of others.”
This comes as no surprise and is certainly a sentiment shared between Lykki Office Supplies and Charlford House Society for Women.
Calvin started his business almost 30 years ago and for over a decade has contributed greatly to the life of Charlford House (a 15-bed facility for women starting a journey of recovery from drug and /or alcohol addiction). As a not-for-profit organization our “little house of miracles” could not have continued to serve the community for the past 47 years, without the ongoing support of businesses such as Lykki.
The corporate culture at this company is reflected in details large and small – each seeming as intentional as the next: from the Tiki Bar reception desk to the palm trees & cabana style work stations (Did someone say fun?); from their core values: “Live, Love, Laugh, Learn” to their “One for One” initiatives (for every one dollar you spend, one litre of clean, safe drinking water is donated to a person in need; for every piece of fruit you purchase, Lykki will donate one piece of fresh fruit to a child in need - now that’s impactful!).
In his earlier days, Calvin considered that success would be making lots of money & accumulating lots of toys – although he always had a heart for others (volunteering for the Annual Variety Telethon for instance) and was proud at the time, of his 40-under-40 recognition. Nowadays however, his perspective has changed – matured – “Success is all about happiness”, he proclaims.
As a responsible business owner, Calvin believes that creating a people-first work environment is imperative. This includes considering the importance of and respecting his staff’s work /life balance. Such thinking results in a much happier, healthier, more productive workplace.
Their tagline is “Delivering office supply happiness”. As a customer, we are certainly happy that if we order before 3pm, the product is delivered the next day. We are happy that there is a 24 hour chat feature on the website, ensuring that personalized service is available anytime. We are happy to do business with a company that has a social conscience. While Lykki supports many local charities, they also make a global impact. Visit lykki.com to learn more.
What does happiness mean to you? Go to facebook.com/Charlford and let us know. We will be happy to hear from you!