Commerce Bank, American Greetings Tap Ladies Who Launch

Commerce Bank and American Greetings have signed as sponsors of Ladies Who Launch, a networking service for women entrepreneurs.

Kansas City, MO-based Commerce will use its sponsorship to launch a Visa card designed for women; American Greetings will tout its three-month-old BloombyAG, a subscription-based e-card Web site that targets working women. Both will use materials created by Ladies Who Launch to introduce their products to the network's 1 million members; the sponsor also can be guest speakers and include marketing materials and premiums in gift bags for all Ladies Who Launch events.

New York-based Ladies Who Launch publishes a weekly e-mail newsletter and hosts networking events in 19 cities, including “incubator” sessions and a speaker series; an online “Launch Pad” networking database; a bi-annual business-idea contest awarding $40,000 in cash and services. Women subscribe to the newsletter for free but pay for events hosted by Ladies Who Launch, which launched in 2002.