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Talk of the bay
Aquarium profits from traveling sea horse tank
By MARK ALBRIGHT
Published April 18, 2005
Sometimes it pays for the Florida Aquarium to have aquariums to lend.
Usually the Tampa attraction sends them to events to gain exposure, but it has a 55-gallon tank on a road trip to select Macy's stores in a promotion that has generated $25,000 in cash donations.
Waterford crystal, which uses a sea horse as its logo, got the ball rolling. The company promotes a conservation/education message with its commemoratives and is talking of starting a partnership with the Seahorse Foundation. The Irish company was looking through Macy's for a cause in Florida linked to the endangered critter.
"We just cold called the Florida Aquarium about it, found out it's a fantastic place that's celebrating its 10th anniversary and set up a partnership," said Delores Stitch, event marketing director at Macy's Florida Division headquarters in Miami.
Waterford and Macy's donated 250 special-edition crystal sea horses engraved for the Aquarium's anniversary and signed by Waterford master sculptor Fred Curtis. The sea horses retail for $100 at the aquarium gift shop - all of which goes to the aquarium. Waterford also donated $11,000 worth of other crystal commemoratives to be auctioned off in an aquarium fundraiser.
The aquarium also lent a tank to the Countryside Macy's for three months, set up a membership signup desk and taught store employees to care for five 5-inch yellow Longsnout sea horses that cavort in the tank they share with Waterford crystal sea horses. The Florida Aquarium display also travels to Macy's in Miami and Boca Raton.
"We announce the sea horse feedings over the store PA," said Macy's Countryside store manager Beth Davis.
The aquarium hopes the partnership will lead to contributions for a sea horse count done with the University of Tampa.
"Tampa Bay once teemed with sea horses," said Thom Stork, aquarium chief executive. "Now they're making a comeback."
[Last modified April 16, 2005, 00:41:02]
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