Calgary-based digital fundraising platform hits $100M milestone

A company that help charities organize their 50/50 raffles, and operates the online components for them, is celebrating as more than $100 million has been donated through their programs.

Rafflebox has proven to be a godsend for organizations who have been trying to meet their fundraising goals during challenging times. The charities are required to market and promote the draws, while the company provides the technical aspects.

Founders Matthew Broussard and Simon Cusack says their first digital raffle took place at the beginning of 2019 but the platform took off during the pandemic when clients were unable to host fundraising events in person.

"It kind of forced a lot of charitable groups to fundraise online," said Broussard. "They were a little apprehensive before COVID so that really sped up our growth anywhere between three to five years in my opinion."

Rafflebox, which has offices in Calgary and Halifax, has thousands of clients all across Canada and has started to expand into the United States.

"Florida was just kind of a natural fit for us and the rules and regulations really benefit the way we operate," said Broussard from their new U.S. office. "It was easy for us and in terms of population, it's almost the size of Canada."

With an office established in Miami, Broussard has hired two more staff members and has reached out to clients in Arizona, Nevada and Alaska. Cusack says one of the challenges with opening an office south of the border is the concept of a raffle. Charities understand it but the public might need a little help.

"There's gonna be a little bit of education involved in what a 50/50 is in the U.S. for the person that buys a raffle (ticket)," explained Cusack. "We're pretty sure once we get into a couple of doors of some pretty large organizations down here that the word is going to get out."

In Calgary, CKUA Radio hosted its Golden Summer 50/50 raffle with Rafflebox that ended in August. Tina Wolfe, the station's marketing, sales and sponsorship manager, ays it was their first time trying an on line draw.

"We were really optimistic," said Wolfe. "But we also didn't know what we were going to be able to achieve and we almost got to a quarter of a million dollars for the full jackpot and that was split half to CKUA and half to one lucky winner."

Wolfe says CKUA Radio is a not-for-profit media organization with a team committed to bringing the best music, arts and culture and creating a better world by connecting with those things. The station receives community support and relies on grants, along with corporate and public donations, to cover its operating costs. The raffle represents a fraction of the money needed annually but Wolfe says it was a positive experience.

"Our key feedback from our hosts from our listeners is that was fun," she said. "So the opportunity for us to do something similar again, we're having the conversations about what it could look like and when we may be wishing to do that."

Cusack says Rafflebox operates in every province except Quebec and is gaining clients in the U.S. every day.

"I guess the biggest benefit of our (platform) is there's no upfront cost to get things going," he said. "We have a very talented team that help people understand the process. We've run thousands and thousands of raffles, (and have) thousands of customers now.

"So (partnering) with those groups to get things up and running, we've just really dialed in to get them to where they need to be and help give them guidance on raising funds."

For more details on the digital fundraising platform visit Rafflebox.