Shops Archives - St Ann's Hospice

Celebrating International Volunteers Day with Beth

December 5, 2023 | 2:50pm

I start work at 10am and it’s always lovely to be welcomed so warmly by Esme, the Shop Manager, and Duck, (David), who also works Wednesdays.

Jackie is also often in on a Wednesday and it’s so nice to see familiar faces.

When your life revolves around being at home with your kids, it gives an extra sense of belonging. It’s not a stuffy, serious vibe at work, it’s very much a friendship feel, with good banter and a chance to get to know each other.

This means the team can feel like your support system, when you’re waffling about the trials and tribulations of life, or parenting! It also extends your friendship circle when you bump into them whilst out!

One of my main duties now includes working on Facebook. I check with Esme which section she wants me to concentrate on that day, e.g. Ladies, Men’s, Kids, Christmas etc, and I take lots of pictures of things that I think will sell well. I then upload them to the St Ann’s Romiley Facebook page, along with details of all the ways people can get in touch with us and details of any special offers on that day.

Once uploaded, I then share the post to many different Facebook groups around the Stockport area. Once that’s done, I reply to any messages that come through, checking the size of an item, or price, or asking us to hold an item for up to 48 hours.

As well as Facebook duties, I also work on the till., putting purchases through or printing out labels for donations received. I also encourage customers to sign up to Gift Aid.

When customers come into the shop with bags of donations, I take them through to the back so that they can be sorted. I’m a very social, outgoing person, so I love interacting with the customers and will always greet them as they enter and leave the shop.

I’m more than happy to chat with them if they look like they’d appreciate that!

I love knowing that whilst I get a lot out of volunteering, it’s also for a bigger cause and a bigger picture.

Beth Crowcroft, Volunteer Shop Assistant

I finish work at 12pm, having packed lots into the two hours I’m there. Over the course of the five years I’ve been at Romiley St Ann’s shop, the amount of time spent volunteering weekly has varied. I initially did one morning a week and then built it up to two mornings a week.

Due to home circumstances, I then needed to go back down to one morning a week. I love the flexibility that comes with volunteering here.

Here’s to many more years volunteering at Romiley St Ann’s shop, as it really is such a welcoming, friendly place!

Winter bargains at our Stockport bridal and vintage shop

November 28, 2023 | 2:33pm

Our Stockport store has a specialist bridal boutique on its first floor, which has an excellent range of brand new or hardly worn wedding dresses being sold this winter.

There will be great prices too on all bridesmaid dresses, mother of the bride and groom outfits, as well as further discounts in the ground floor vintage shop on all vintage items and books.

The sale is flaunting brand new and excellent condition outfits that are perfect for any weddings or festive occasions you might have coming up.

Jules Lamb is the Acting Manager of our Stockport store and she’s encouraging anyone in need of a wedding outfit or vintage items to go down to the shop for this season’s bargains.

“I help to run the St Ann’s Hospice Stockport shop to raise funds for its services, which cover much of Greater Manchester and parts of Cheshire. There is a dedicated specialist bridal and occasion dress shop on the second floor, which has the latest styles on offer for great value for money.

All of the dresses at our shop are on sale for £200 or less until the end of November, with lots of dresses available that have only been worn once or are brand new.

Jules Lamb , Stockport Shop Manager

“We know people love to recycle and be more environmentally conscious, so we love to support this to make sure our customers get pre-loved dresses that are in excellent condition.”

The money raised from each dress is so important in supporting our hospice which helps many people in Greater Manchester with end-of-life care.

There are appointments for fittings all day from Tuesday to Saturday, and the store caters to everyone’s needs for their dress, with accessories to match and a recommended seamstress just down the road from the shop.

To see more updates about the dresses and accessories in store currently, please visit the Facebook page SAH Bridal Stockport.

Shop with St Ann’s at Charity Super.Mkt this weekend!

May 31, 2023 | 6:17pm

St Ann’s Hospice are almost ready for Charity Super.Mkt at ‘We Invented the Weekend’, a free festival taking place in MediaCity this weekend.

Charity Super.Mkt boasts sustainable and affordable shopping that presents second-hand clothes and accessories from over 10 of the nation’s best charity retailers for those attending to browse and buy.

We Invented the Weekend is a brand-new festival, with activities celebrating and sharing everything people love about the weekend – particularly celebrating shopping!

St Ann’s Hospice will have a stand with amazing designer brands, vintage clothing and accessories sent from across all our shops and generous donors.

We’ll be there from 10am-7pm on Saturday 3^rd June and from 10am-6pm on Sunday 4^th June.

We are really excited to be taking part in Charity Super.Mkt’s first event in the North of England. We can’t think of a better event to showcase the amazing quality donations we get every day in our charity shops across Greater Manchester than the bold and unmissable festival that is We Invented the Weekend. Not only is it a great opportunity to celebrate the weekend being invented in Greater Manchester (it really was!), it’s also a fantastic way for people to support Greater Manchester’s largest and oldest hospice too.

Ryan Perkins, Head of Trading – Retail, St Ann’s Hospice

Charity Super.Mkt is the UK’s first multi-charity shop, bringing together a range of charity retailers to sell side-by-side in their pop-up shops and at their market events.

Wayne Hemingway MBE, co-founder of the We Invented the Weekend festival, commented on the final programme announcement. He says: “It’s nearly time to let loose and celebrate free time in a completely refreshing and new way this June. We Invented the Weekend is for everyone and we guarantee everyone will get to try a new pastime or ten during the weekend celebrations.

“The festival has the perfect mixture of activities so no matter where you’re travelling from or who you’re travelling with, there will be something for you. And what is more, it’s FREE!”

For more information on Charity Super.Mkt at We Invented the Weekend, see their website here.

For more information on our charity shops, see here.

Get a taste of volunteering at St Ann’s Hospice shops

May 30, 2023 | 6:11pm

As part of The Big Help Out, a national initiative to raise awareness of and provide opportunities for volunteering, St Ann’s Hospice is offering volunteer taster sessions for anyone interested in finding out more about volunteering at our charity shops.

The taster sessions will take place every Thursday until 8^th June across six of our charity shops in Heald Green, Stockport, Edgeley, Sale, Altrincham and Little Hulton. All the sessions are two hours, either from 10am-12pm or 2-4pm.

This is a great opportunity to meet new people and learn new skills, all whilst doing your bit to support St Ann’s Hospice.

We are really pleased to be part of The Big Help Out and offer taster sessions for volunteers in our St Ann’s Hospice charity shops. Our shops raise thousands of pounds for St Ann’s Hospice every year and we couldn’t continue to do this without the work and commitment of our shop volunteers. Volunteering in our shops is a great way to meet new people and learn new skills, while making a valuable contribution to St Ann’s. The volunteer taster sessions provide an opportunity for anyone curious about volunteering to meet the shop teams and find out more about how our volunteers help, from sorting donated items and preparing them for sale to creating exciting window displays.

Trudi Ogden, Co-Head of Trading, St Ann’s Hospice

Ian Stewart, a volunteer at the St Ann’s Hospice shop in Sale, has been volunteering for six years since he retired in 2017.

I needed to do something moving forward and decided to give back to St Ann’s after they cared for my mum. I’d never worked in a shop before, but I like meeting people, talking to them and having a joke with them. I get on with the team and get a real reward out of doing it.

Ian Stewart, Volunteer, St Ann’s Hospice

Volunteers have been joining the taster sessions since The Big Help Out was launched on 8^th May as part of the Coronation weekend. The Big Help Out estimate that 6,510,000 million people participated in 55,123 events across the country, and hope that it will encourage further volunteer participation in local communities.

There are opportunities to become a permanent volunteer if you enjoy your taster session, with St Ann’s Hospice always looking for people to join our friendly teams across Greater Manchester.

To book a session or find out more details, you can download The Big Help Out app via the App Store, or alternatively visit the website at app.thebighelpout.com.

“The dress was a dream to wear, I felt like a million dollars!” St Ann’s Hospice’s Bridal Shop flaunts incredible dress selection

March 28, 2023 | 12:21pm

Credit: @vivienneeegeweddings on Instagram.

Our Bridal and Vintage Store in Stockport boasts many wedding dresses donated to us by wedding boutiques and local people who want their wedding dress make someone else’s special day.

Alexandra Hodges got married on 18th February and wore a dress she’d bought from the shop last year.

Alexandra says: “I tried on lots of dresses in different boutiques across the country, but I hadn’t found the exact one I was looking for. I didn’t have a specific dress design in mind, I just wanted to see what dress was right for me.

I had a few dresses that I was considering when trying them on at the shop, but then at the last minute a beautiful Justin Alexander dress was pulled out, specifically for me to try, and I remember so vividly how I couldn’t stop looking at myself in it! It was the one!

Alexandra Hodges, Bride

We run our Stockport shop with a dedicated specialist bridal department on the second floor which has the latest styles on offer for great value for money.

All of our dresses at the shop are for sale, with hundreds of dresses available that have only been worn once or are brand new. Many are donated by bridal boutiques at the end of the season, so they are all great value for a fraction of the price you’d pay elsewhere.

My dress was in such brilliant condition; it had never been worn before and was only £300 – a tenth of the price I was looking at paying elsewhere.

Alexandra Hodges, Bride

“I didn’t originally have a budget for my dress, but with so many styles I was completely spoilt for choice at the Stockport shop and made it even better that the dress I fell in love with was a bargain!”

Jules Lamb, Acting Manager at our Bridal and Vintage store, says: “We know people love to recycle and be more environmentally conscious, so we love to support this to make sure our brides get dresses that are in excellent condition and are second hand.

The money paid for each dress is so important in supporting St Ann’s Hospice which helps many people in Greater Manchester with end-of-life care.”

Jules Lamb, Acting Manager at the Bridal & Vintage store

There are appointments for fittings all day from Tuesday to Saturday, with the shop also catering for mother of the bride and bridesmaids, accessories to match and a recommended seamstress just down the road.

Alexandra says: “I’m honestly so grateful and feel incredibly lucky to have had the opportunity to wear such an amazing dress from this lovely shop. My experience was nothing short of brilliant!”

Credit: @vivienneeegeweddings on Instagram.

To see more updates about the dresses and accessories in store, please visit our Facebook page SAH Bridal Stockport.

Bargain lovers in the area will be in for a treat this month thanks to a special sale!

May 25, 2022 | 11:04pm

We get so many amazing items donated to the hospice, and many are sold in our shops around Greater Manchester or in our online stores. But, we know how much people love a bargain, so have also decided to run this special sale at our big Distribution Centre in Reddish. It will be perfect for people who love to have a browse, and with hundreds of items available, they’re sure to come away with some great deals.

Ryan Perkins, Co Head of Trading at St Ann’s

The sale, which will be open from 9am to 1pm, will take place at St Ann’s Hospice Distribution Centre, Bankfield Industrial Estate, Unit A1, Coronation Street, Reddish, SK5 7SE.

As with all of our shops, money raised will help the hospice to continue providing its specialist care to people from across Greater Manchester and parts of Cheshire – so as well as grabbing a bargain, shoppers can also be reassured to know that their purchases are making a real difference too.

Ryan Perkins, Co Head of Trading at St Ann’s

Do you love a bargain??

We have 10 charity shops! Find out more

Here!

Why I love my job – Jenny

April 29, 2022 | 8:45am

“My role includes buying new goods to sell in our high street shops and putting together seasonal catalogues to promote stock.

“I’m based in our Distribution Centre in Reddish, where I manage the warehouse day-to-day and manage and promote our drive-thru donation days and Distribution Centre sales. I also take donations and sort them for the shops and sale days.

“I’ve worked in charity retail for 20 years, including buying for national charities, and I’ve been at St Ann’s for four years.

One of the things I love most about my job is knowing that every penny I help raise goes to support the hospice.

“My favourite part of the job is putting together the Christmas card catalogue and choosing the range of cards.

“I love meeting people at the drive-thru donation days and Distribution Centre sales. People are very generous and want to support St Ann’s.”

We’re looking for volunteers for our shops

Do you have time to spare to help out in our shops? Click the button below to sign up.

Click here

Global Recycling Day blog by Ryan Perkins

March 17, 2022 | 9:20pm

The 18th March marks Global Recycling Day – an annual day to help recognise, and celebrate, the importance recycling plays in securing the future of our planet.

I don’t think the environmental benefits of charity retail are a surprise to anyone anymore but the numbers are still shocking. At least £31 million each year is saved by charity shops for councils in waste disposal charges by diverting 339,000 tonnes of textiles away from landfill or incineration. This reduction in landfill not only saves money but it also makes a positive difference to the UK’s carbon footprint.

The charity retail sector is not only built on sustainable principles but it provides clothing to people at a price they can afford. We offer people the opportunity to live more sustainably with the clothes, shoes, books and furniture that we sell and the message of re-use and recycle is at the core or what we do.

Did you know charity shops re-use or recycle more than 90% of all items donated? If our shops cannot re-use or sell an item, they will seek to recycle it via a textile recycler.

Here are our top 3 tips for maximising your recycling and how our shops can help you:

Re-use – we have charity shops all over Greater Manchester where you can find some fantastic second hand bargains from clothes to books, to toys and games, and we even have a wedding dress shop located in Stockport where you can find your dream dress.

Repair or up-cycle – we have specialist furniture shops where you can find a treasure trove of items, including second hand beds, chairs, tables, lamps, sofas and sideboards which could make great projects to up-cycle. Plus, if you no longer need an item of furniture then donate it to our charity shops and book a free collection.

Reduce – one way you can reduce your plastic waste is by using our plastic-free ECOLEAF refills for a range of household products at our Heald Green charity shop. Simply bring your containers, fill them up with your chosen products and pay at the till.

By shopping with St Ann’s, you’re not only helping the planet and bagging a bargain, but your purchase helps fund the care and support we offer our patients and their families.

Has this inspired you to recycle more?

For more information about our shops and our items that we sell or how you can donate click the button below.