Trade Aid Dunedin, a retail charity branch in George St, opened its doors for the last time yesterday before shutting them for good.
In a statement in March, Trade Aid said it had made the “difficult decision” to progressively close its retail network across the country after the cost-of-living crisis had led to rising costs and diminished sales which had “significantly impacted” its financial performance.
It would continue to sell stock online.
The Dunedin store operated for 11 years before moving to George St in 2005, with the brand itself marking its 50th anniversary last year.
Dunedin manager Dean Griffiths said business had been “crazy” over the past week with hundreds of customers having visited the store each day.
“The sad irony is it’s because we’re closing,” he said.
The store’s final days had been a mixture of sadness for the closure and a celebration of what they had achieved over 30 years in Dunedin, Mr Griffiths said.
It was one of 24 stores across the country and had been run by two paid staff and about 15 volunteers — some of whom had been there for more than a decade.
Their regular customers had been paying them a visit to give hugs, tell stories and shed a few tears, Mr Griffiths said.
One customer, an agoraphobic woman who he delivered to every year, “just burst into tears” over the phone after telling her their store was closing.
“She had been shopping with us for 30 years and been relying on us for all her organic food, tea and coffee.
“We had a conversation about her time . . . the worry for her of where she’s going to get her stuff from now, but of course we’re going to be online so hopefully she can continue supporting us in that way.”
Mr Griffiths said he had been involved with the organisation for 28 years and never thought the store would close.
The crisis had taken a toll on retail, including social enterprise organisations like Trade Aid, and it was sad to have seen a lot more shops closing.
“Going online is OK, but you lose that human connection,” he said.
tim.scott@odt.co.nz
