A record-breaking opening day for Oakhaven’s new Home and Craft Shop!
On Wednesday 2 April, over 2,000 people visited Oakhaven Hospice’s new Home & Craft charity shop in Lymington - and the store smashed all previous sales records for Oakhaven’s High Street shops!
An excited queue stretched down the length of St Thomas Street of locals and visitors to Lymington eager to be amongst the first to set foot in Oakhaven’s new charity shop - and eager to meet BBC TV’s ‘Teddy Bear Ladies’ and Southampton footballing legend Matt Le Tissier!
At 10am, Oakhaven’s Chief Executive Andrew Ryde, thanked everyone involved with the new charity shop before handing over to The Repair Shop’s Julie Tatchell and Amanda Middleditch to cut the ribbon and open the Home & Craft Shop.
It was a record-breaking opening day! Over 2,000 people visited the new charity shop, with many new friendships formed over craft conversations and delight at treasures found whilst in the queue for the till! The new shop attracted many locals and also many visitors to the area, who declared they would be bringing friends and relatives to Lymington very soon.
The Lymington Home & Craft Shop, at 27a St Thomas Street, has been highly anticipated since the closure two years ago of the charity’s ‘pop-up’ craft shop. Oakhaven Hospice’s ninth charity shop joins the Furniture, Children’s, Fashion and Designer Fashion Shops in Lymington, along with those in Totton, New Milton and two shops in Hythe. Each is an Aladdin’s cave filled with real treasures and the ultimate in recycling and sustainable shopping.
The Home & Craft shop stocks a wide range of haberdashery, fabrics, crafting materials, children’s crafts, books and games, as well as kitchenware, dining ware, electrical goods and other homeware. The new shop is highly accessible, with a ramp leading into the shop and space between aisles for mobility.
Gary Taylor, Oakhaven’s Head of Retail, said, “We would like to thank everyone who came to support us on the day and everyone involved in the two-year preparation of this long-anticipated new shop, including our landlord and everyone who has donated items for us to sell. It was a long road, but what a day!
“A special thanks to all the amazing team of staff and volunteers who have helped with the shop, thank you for your loyalty, resilience and incredible hard work. One thing that I have learned about crafters is that they are resourceful - if you need to solve a problem, seek out a crafter!
“We’re delighted that the new shop’s turnover on Wednesday was over ten times higher than an average day, smashing all previous daily records ever held in any of our High Street shops!”
Amanda Middleditch of The Teddy Bear Ladies, said, “It’s great to have somewhere like this where you can come and swap crafting materials. You can bring your things in and then take on something new. I think it's a really good way of encouraging particularly young people to start crafting because they can come in and it's a bit more affordable, or they can pick up something someone's already started but they haven't finished and maybe have a go and not feel they've spent a fortune if they don't like it.”
Andrew Ryde, Chief Executive, said, “As a charity, only 11% of Oakhaven’s costs are covered by the NHS. Our shops provide an important income stream for the charity, and we are delighted by the warm welcome that has been given to our new Home & Craft Shop. Thank you to everyone who donates items for us to sell in our shops and to everyone who supports us with purchases. Your support helps to fund vital end-of-life care for patients and specialist support for their families and loved ones - free of charge - when they need it most. Oakhaven’s care and support extends throughout our New Forest, Totton and Waterside communities.”
Matt Le Tissier said, “The money that these shops raise for the hospice is just incredible because the funding from the government just isn’t enough. The staff are always amazing, always friendly with a smile for you.”
Find details of the Oakhaven shops at oakhavenhospice.co.uk/retail-shops.
Oakhaven welcomes your donations of items for the charity shops; anything that can be carried in a box or a bag can be taken to any of the Oakhaven shops during opening hours. For larger items or to organise a collection, please visit oakhavenhospice.co.uk/shop-donations for details, or call 01590 637781.
Oakhaven volunteers receive a twenty per cent discount in the Oakhaven shops! To find out about joining the Oakhaven family of volunteers, whether in the shops, in the Hospice, at the Coates Centre, at events or providing neighbourly help to patients in their homes, visit oakhavenhospice.co.uk/volunteer.
Care for a Cuppa
Could you host a coffee morning or tea party to help raise funds for Oakhaven Hospice?
Make a donation
