'Lucky Elephants' That Give Back

We’re highlighting small businesses from around the country as nominated by you, our readers. If your favorite small business is using Twitter to communicate with customers, let us know about it @fbsmallbiz with the hashtag #mysbc, and it may be featured as an upcoming Small Business of the Day.

Small Business of the Day: the lucky elephant 

Who: Jutta Hilpuesch, 41, @t_luckyelephant

What: Handmade good luck elephant jewelry

When: 2010

How: Hilpuesch had always experimented with making jewelry as a hobby, but stopped after she had the first of her three children. She previously worked for a consumer goods company in Germany before moving to the U.S. in 2001.

After having her third child in 2010, she picked up her old hobby for fun.

"I experimented with wrap bracelets," Hilpuesch said. "I have always loved elephants, and I designed these bracelets and ended up loving the design."

Right now she is selling exclusively on Etsy.com, but is planning to expand and create her own site in the next year. Hilpuesch also gives 10% of each bracelet's proceeds to Urban Initiatives, a Chicago-based nonprofit.

Where: Chicago

Biggest lesson learned from a customer: "It's nice to have people enjoy what you do," she said. "I have not [had] any negative things happen to me. It’s a fun thing to do what I love and make people happy."

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