Tie-dye specialist blends social and business goals with help from UPS

Dharma Trading Co. founder Isaac Goff shares his business's success by funding medical programs in Bolivia.

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Tie-dye enthusiasts and textile shoppers who visit Dharma Trading Co. dig the retail shop's mom-and-pop, hippie vibe. It's the go-to spot for a vast assortment of dyeable garments, dyes, transfer products, tools and paints. But those shoppers might be surprised to learn that the laid-back, 40-year-old company in San Rafael, Calif., also is one of the top textile-crafts suppliers in the country. During peak season, Dharma sends 600 to 800 packages a day to everyone from knitting grandmas to Hollywood set designers.

Founded by Isaac Goff in 1969 (following a jaunt to Mexico for goods, a taxi-driving stint in New York City and a spiritual pursuit), Dharma Trading still follows a few guiding principles: Run a profitable business while maintaining ethical values, offer great customer service and create a pleasant place to work. Goff and his team like working with good people who can help deliver their message. That's why they've been shipping with UPS all along.

"We like the way UPS is well-known among consumers," Goff says. "We know the driver, the route, what time they're coming. We like that familiarity, and it's all part of the decision to work with UPS. The pricing has always been good, too, which has always been attractive."

Streamlined online
Dharma Trading launched an online store in 1995, but it took another seven years before the company turned its attention to making the online business more robust. Jeremy Lang, a longtime employee who manages shipping duties, says UPS WorldShip, a shipping system that employees can access from a computer, helped streamline tasks. The company integrated WorldShip with its back-end business processes to update online order data every 15 minutes. Now, when processing orders, employees only need to enter the invoice number, and the customer's order information automatically populates into WorldShip – there's no need to manually type it in. This not only saves valuable time but also eliminates the possibility of data entry errors.

Since Dharma Trading sells a lot of plain white clothing, many of its garment orders are delivered straight from the manufacturer, such as Hanes or Fruit of the Loom, via inbound UPS Freight LTL. "It's easier to manage a pallet than 35 individual boxes of T-shirts," Lang says. And, should he need to, he can track those shipments right from WorldShip. "Whenever we can, we'll use UPS for freight. The inbound shipping rates are great, and it's all in the same contract. Plus, we have a dedicated team at UPS. We just make one call and they handle any questions or concerns."

Dharma Trading Co. takes advantage of the UPS Customer Technology Program, an initiative that subsidizes businesses with vouchers for technology such as computers, shipping scales and printers from approved vendors, including Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Zebra.

Giving back to the world
While UPS works to improve Dharma Trading's shipping experience, Goff continues to pursue his social goals. The success of his company has allowed him to fund medical projects for children in Bolivia. Each year, the company pays for about 12 heart surgeries, and through a vision program he founded, provides glasses for about 1,000 children. UPS ships that eyewear from China directly to the kids in Bolivia.

"There's an inherent principle here," he says. "We're fortunate in many, many ways, and it's important that we share our fortunes. That's the whole cycle."