What makes our charity shops so special?

We’re celebrating our retail team this Hospice Care Week. Find out more about the team, and what makes our charity shops stand out.

The importance of charity shops

Our retail team are the heart of our hospice in the community, providing a warm and friendly welcome to customers across Sussex and South-East Hampshire. Often our shops are the first point of contact for our supporters, and it’s not just a place to pick up a bargain: shoppers can also donate, sign up to volunteer, take part in a fundraising event, apply for a job with us, or even leave a legacy in their will.

Our successful collection of 26 shops generate approximately £3.4m per year and contribute a huge amount to hospice care.

We caught up with some of our colleagues from the Shoreham and Broadwater shops to find out what they love most about working in hospice retail and how they manage to stay competitive in high streets chockful of charity shops.

A personal connection makes all the difference

Natalie at Shoreham has been working in our shops for almost six years. Having started as an Assistant Manager in our Chestnut Tree House shop in Brighton, she later became Manager of our St Barnabas shop in Shoreham. Something which shines through particularly strongly in Natalie is her passion for the local community.

“Shoreham is where I grew up so it feels like coming home to be managing the shop here. In return we get great support (many say it’s the best shop in Shoreham) and some amazing donations!

“A local resident recently donated some beautiful guitars, which we were able to sell for around £500, after they heard on the news how hospices are struggling financially. They also made a very generous cash donation. It’s days like that which give me and my team the feel-good factor and help us all to remember the difference we can make.”

After browsing Natalie’s beautiful displays, it’s clear why many customers say it’s the best shop in Shoreham. Personal touches such as selling beautiful handmade items crafted by volunteers and their families, topical and eye-catching windows leading into a shop full of fascinating and unique items. It stands out from its competitors and it’s difficult to leave this shop without buying something amazing.

Staying competitive as a charity shop

Another way in which our retail team are working hard to stand out from competitors (and generate more income for our hospices) is by introducing discount shops. At present, we have two discount shops – Chestnut Tree House in Hove and St Barnabas in Broadwater.

Nici, Retail Manager at our Broadwater shop, explains the benefits that discount shops bring to our organisation, as well as the environment.

“Our discount shops are all about giving donated items another chance. If they don’t sell during their time at two of our other shops, they come to us and get sold at discounted prices – often £2 – £3. This means we need to sell a lot more items to generate the same income as other shops, but also that we save a lot of donations from being recycled for a very low price.”

“Since opening as a discount store, we’ve halved the number of products being recycled which we are incredibly proud of as a team. This has been helped through initiatives such as selling bundles of children’s clothing in bags, rather than separately and introducing a £1 rail. In the current cost-of-living crisis, people need our discount shops more than ever, as they can buy 5 or 6 items for the same price as 1 or 2 elsewhere. It can be challenging sometimes, particularly around the change of seasons, as we have limited storage and customers aren’t always looking for items at the time of year we’re selling them – for example, I currently have flip flops displayed alongside winter boots!”

“However, despite these occasional challenges, I love working here as I really believe in the ethos of the shop – reducing waste and looking after the environment, whilst also benefitting the local community and supporting our hospices.