WEIRD, wonderful and rare items collected at a charity’s Rugby warehouse have helped it to raise over £450,000 in its first year.
Children’s charity Barnardo’s is celebrating the first anniversary of its online ‘hub’ on the Swift Valley Industrial Estate, where it collects the most valuable and unusual donations received by its charity stores across the UK to sell on eBay.
Among over 10,000 items sold so far, the most lucrative donations include a ring which sold for over £900, collectible coins which have raised over £20,000, and retro toys – with Action Man sets often selling for over £200.
And recent donations include a World Wrestling Federation world champion title belt, a pair of Giannini Versace shoes, antique teddy bears, a Second World War helmet and a Tony Hawks skateboard.
The team at the hub celebrated the anniversary by gathering to cut a specially decorated cake.
Staff at Bernado’s Online Hub celebrate its first anniversary with a specially-decorated cake. 19.019.006.rug.jm1
Barnardo’s online operations manager Jonathan Cage said staff were amazed and delighted that the new venture had exceeded their expectations.
He said: “Previously, a high-value donation would only be seen by shoppers in a single store and our local staff may have been unaware of its true worth.
“However, eBay offers a far larger audience and our team has much more time to look into the true value of each gift which has been flagged for our attention.
“Online sales have included jackets, shoes, hats and handbags which have sold for hundreds of pounds, but our most expensive items have been gold and jewellery.
“Foreign coins, and those no longer in circulation, raised more than £20,000 last year, and retro toys from the 1960s-80s are always popular.
“People won’t pay these prices in a charity shop, but they will when shopping online.”
The hub is looking for more volunteers to help staff with researching, cleaning, repairing and photographing the donations.
Jonathan said: “Every hour of support is sincerely appreciated.
“Working together, we’re raising much-needed funds to transform the lives of the UK’s most vulnerable children, young people and families.”
Visit www.barnardos.org.uk/volunteering or email [email protected] for more information on the voluntary roles available.
