Spirit of Youth

The Youth Friendly Business recognition program honors for-profit businesses that:

Treat youth customers with respect.
Hire youth, encourage their success, and prepare youth for future careers.
Support community and school activities for youth.

All companies that earn this designation are awarded a certificate and are entitled to display the Youth Friendly decal in their window. In addition, they will be recognized in local press and on our web site.

View a list of Youth Friendly Businesses

Why should businesses care about teenaged customers?

Nationally, teens spent $175 billion in 2003 (average of $103 weekly) according to a study by Teenage Research Unlimited, the nation's premier market-research firm focusing on the teen market.

Application and review process

Applications or nominations are made by anyone and accepted throughout the year. All nominations must have at least one youth reference. The Spirit of Youth Teen Action Council, that developed the criteria, reviews all applications. You may fill out a nomination form in one of three ways:

Fill out the Online nomination form
Print out the PDF or Word file of the nomination form and mail to Spirit of Youth or email to info @ spiritofyouth.org
Use the of the nomination form and mail to SOY or email to info@spiritofyouth.org