The Hospice UK Retail Awards 2017 took place yesterday at the Hospice UK Retail conference entitled “Reinvention or Revolution?” held in Kennilworth, Warwickshire. Presented by Tracey Bleakley, Chief Executive of Hospice UK, the awards recognised hard working volunteers, highly efficient retail teams, and an unusual donations such as a century-old chicken egg.
Most Unusual Item donated to a hospice
The award for Most Unusual Item donated to a hospice went to an antique birthing stool – designed to support women to stay in an upright posture during childbirth.
The item was left outside St Ann’s hospice shop in Edgeley, Greater Manchester. Curious about its origins, the hospice did some research and discovered that birthing chairs replaced an even older practice of mothers in labour sitting on birth attendant’s laps. The stool ended up being sold to a local antiques dealer with the income coming back to the hospice.
A close contender for the top award for unusual items was an unbroken 96-year-old chicken egg which had been saved in a cardboard box since Easter 1921. The date was marked on the egg which was sold under the curios category on eBay.
Other unusual items which featured in the award entries included a full-size doctor’s skeleton and a pair of customised jeans covered in white graffiti, some featuring swear words. (The latter item for obvious reasons was not put on display in the hospice’s shop).
Specialist Retail Outlet of the Year
Martlets Hospice won the Specialist Retail Outlet of the Year award for its enterprising ‘pop-up’ shop in Brighton’s shopping mall, Churchill Square, as part of the popular art sculpture trail campaign called ‘Snowdogs by the Sea’. The stand sold Snowdog merchandise to support the art trail, including ceramic figurines, clothing, stationery and toys.
The pop-up shop was promoted online, via social media, and in the local press. It did a roaring trade from its first day, and during the eight weeks of opening it took £60,000, plus £900 in cash donations.
Each day one of two paid managers was supported by volunteers who worked half day shifts. Displays were well maintained and staff spared no efforts in helping customers to shop the range of goods and talk about the trail and the hospice at the same time.
Overall, across its three shops in Brighton and the pop-up shop the hospice sold £170,000 of Snowdogs merchandise, making a retail profit of around £70,000, far exceeding its conservative target of £20,000.
Commenting on the awards Catherine Bosworth, Director of Income Generation at Hospice UK, said:
“These awards celebrate the many faces of the UK’s flourishing hospice retail sector, from its creative and entrepreneurial spirit and dedicated volunteers to the downright curious, reflected in some of the more unusual items donated to hospice shops.
“Hospice shops are a vital source of income for hospices and as well as generating much-needed funds are also a great way for them to engage with the public and help increase awareness about the benefits of hospice care.”
Hospice shops form a large part of the charity sector market with 2,500 shops across the UK which generate total profits of £55m. Hospices derive on average about 10 per cent of their income from shop profits.
Retail Team of the Year
During 2016 the dynamic team at St Christopher’s Hospice in south London delivered more than any other year, generating over £1m profit from its 19 shops and opening two new sites, including a new retail hub.
The retail hub has supported all the other shops with stock storage sorting, consumables and housing the retail offices, which has freed up much needed space in the hospice without the added costs for office space.
This, in addition to improvements introduced for data capture and to simplify the gift aid process has enabled the trading team to “work smarter not harder”, keep costs down and increase profit productivity. It has also allowed more time for training volunteers and staff, promoting growth and stability within the team.
Retail Volunteer of the Year
Phyllis Shepherd started volunteering in one of Thames Hospice’s shops shortly after her husband died, just over a year ago, giving up her free time every Saturday morning without fail.
Staff describe her as “an absolute treasure” and say her wonderful sense of humour and lively personality brings an influx of customers every Saturday who come in especially to see her, which is always reflected in the shops takings for the day.
She conscientiously never leaves the shop until the afternoon volunteers have arrived, so the manager is never short on help and can take a well-deserved lunch break.
Phyllis is also known for her strong sense of community. In addition to her volunteering she also does readings in the village library and organises coffee mornings in the village hall, meaning local residents get to know her and follow her to the shop when she is on shift.
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