Young people are among the smiling volunteers behind the counter at Waihī Beach Community Shop.
The new shop is one of the Western Bay’s newest charity shops raising money for local organisations.
The shop has been trading for just over a year and was founded to raise money for the Mayor View Volunteer Fire Brigade, Waihī Beach Volunteer Coastguard and Waihī Beach Surf Life Saving Club.
Volunteer Jim Pooley says the three local groups were in need of a steady revenue stream.
But the difference at this opportunity shop is their board is a mix of young and older people.
“The under-20s offer a different prospective to how they see our community shop operating and supporting our community. By having young people involved at board level, we also get the benefit of having a young vibe in the shop when we are open. Some of our volunteers are primary school children who want to help and be involved - it is so amazing to see young people roll up their sleeves to help our community.”
Jim says everyone has a voice at their board meetings, and in the mix are representatives from each entity.
The public support has been "overwhelming", he says.
“The community has really embraced supporting us at the till.
“We have a steady supply of donations coming in daily, which is just fantastic. It just shows community supporting community is alive and well.”
They also have a team of people working behind the scenes who wash clothing items.
“With the economy the way it is currently, we are seeing more people frequenting the shop to find a good deal and save some money, which they can put back into their families.”
St Peter’s Op-Shop co-ordinator Sue Cox says they are also very pleased with the support they get from the community.
"Plenty of stock gets dropped off regularly. We have many customers and have built up a good clientele of regulars. Especially our lovely RSE workers."
Their big concern is being used as a dumping ground for unwanted goods.
"We do not take in electrical goods as we have no one able to check them."
Waipuna Hospice Charity Shop in Katikati is looking for more donations.
Waipuna Hospice op-shops are calling out for donations.
General manager of retail Jace Dowman says after speaking to counterparts in the Waikato, they are all saying the same: “It’s quite quiet.”
Jace says there is an element of speculation in play, but there is a strong possibility the cost of living crisis is at the root of the drop-off in donations.
“I think it’s got a lot to do with that. People are not buying new, so they don’t really have the ability to donate what they would usually.”
The crisis might also mean more people are buying second-hand and are relying on op-shops more.
“It’s all guesswork - it could also be the winter as well. People don’t like moving around as much.”
He says the impact isn’t being seen in one particular area.
“Our supply chain is centralised and handles all our collections, and we’ve definitely noticed there has been quite a decline in our collections.”
He says he hopes with warmer, longer days on the horizon, more people will be looking to spring clean and declutter, and will then consider donating their unwanted, saleable possessions.
He says while furniture, bric-a-brac and clothing items are always useful, anything that can be on-sold would be welcome.
Waipuna Hospice has a collection service for larger items or for people who might not be able to make donations at stores during their opening hours.
