The new St Richard’s Hospice Malvern Link store has proved such a success that the charity is urging more volunteers to step forward and help.
In just over a week since opening the charity department store on the Worcester Road welcomed more than 1,500 customers who bought 4,000 items.
Danny Corns, St Richard’s Commercial Director, said; “Due to the magnificent success of the Malvern Link Department Store we are on the search for volunteers with specific skills to help us. To keep the momentum up we need to constantly re stock the shop and provide a great environment for our customers.”
He added, “The success of the new store is down to the varied items we have for sale which includes furniture, linen and electrical items. We are unique as a charity in that we do sell electrical items instead of sending them to landfill. We are looking for volunteers who can be trained to pat-test the items for safety and therefore enable us to sell them within our store. Furniture is sometimes heavy and difficult to move and often could do with a handle or screw to repair them. So if you are handy with your hands you can help us achieve a higher price for the products by also repairing them. “
Mr Corns asked potential volunteers to call into the shop to see the manager to chat through volunteer vacancies.
Mr Corns said, “We have developed a very successful chain of shops across the county and are lucky to benefit from the dedication of our volunteers and the local community who generously support the hospice.”
High street shops are a charity’s face within the community and offer an easy way for people to get involved with the organisation by donating their unwanted items, and purchasing second-hand goods no longer required by others. Last year, the hospice’s 18 shops across Worcestershire achieved a turnover of £2.3 million by selling good quality clothes, bric-a-brac, books and furniture donated by local people.
Shops Director Dan Corns with shop manager Maggie Duffield
St Richard’s Hospice provides free specialist palliative care for patients living with life-threatening illnesses and supports their families. Each year the hospice team supports over 2,600 patients and family members in Worcestershire with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
Patients are cared for in Day Hospice, the 17-bed In-patient Unit or in their own homes by a specialist professional team as well as many trained volunteers.
In the In-patient Unit, specialist staff are on hand 24 hours a day to manage patients’ symptoms and where, if appropriate, patients may spend the last few days of life in comfort and dignity. St Richard’s is an independent charity and is grateful for all donations to help it to continue its work.