e-News February 2017

        

Dear 


Last week I had the good fortune to travel to the North Coast of Tasmania where I visited a number of Op shops and experienced the hospitality of Lifeline and Vinnies. I also had the privilege to visit Vincent Industries which is an Australian Disability Enterprise that has been in business since 1976 and provides work and training opportunities on the North West of Tasmania. It was heartening to see the charitable recycling sector thriving with benevolence and goodwill assisting their communities challenged by few job opportunities.


 I hope you enjoy reading this enews and welcome your contributions and feedback.  
 


Kind regards
Kerryn Caulfield 
Chief Executive Officer, NACRO    Top
In this issue (click on title)
How e-commerce and physical retailing are merging
Toys available from Peninsular Toy Repairers
WA council's charity clothing donation day
The debate over secondhand clothes in Senegal
How e-commerce and physical retailing are merging
Online retailers were once expected to destroy their bricks and mortar cousins. Instead, the two worlds have merged, and that has created a challenge for both, says writer Chris Sheedy.
Source: In The Black


In his article for the online newsletter In The Black Mr Sheedy observes:  " For many years the bricks and mortar (physical) retail world was seen as the old guard, the quaint shops of yesteryear set to be mercilessly swept away by the trendier, faster moving and more efficient e-commerce start-ups. The current shape of the retail market, however, makes it clear that this is not the case." 

Read the full article here ...

Toys available from Peninsular toy repairers - Ingelside NSW
The Peninsular Seniors Toy Repair Group Inc  in NSW has too many toys and is wishing to redistribute them to charities.

Formed in 1975 with the intention of bringing together senior citizens in the community to repair damaged toys and donate them to needy families or children's organisations, the group now has some 30 volunteers.  

For more information, visit the group's website here ...  or  contact David Leonard direct by email ...  
WA council's charity clothing donation day 
MORE than eight tonnes of second-hand clothing and textiles were donated at the City of Joondalup's Charity Clothing Drop-Off Day on Saturday, 18 February.
This couple got into the spirit of the City of Joondalup charity clothing donation day. Source: communitynews.com.au

About 430 vehicles visited the two drop-off points at Craigie Leisure Centre and the City's administration building where Anglicare WA, Vinnies WA and the Salvos Stores were on hand to collect the donations.

All second-hand clothing and textiles donations were distributed to Anglicare WA, Vinnies and the Salvos Stores for sale at their retail outlets or recycled into industrial rags if not of resale quality.

More on the City of Joondalup's Facebook page here ...











The debate over second-hand clothes in Senegal
Donated to charity, used clothing is big business with 18,500 tonnes imported each year to the West African nation of Senegal.
A woman sells clothes at the weekly market of Gueule Tapee in Dakar _Ndela Faye_Al Jazeera_
A woman sells clothes at the weekly market of Gueule Tapee in Dakar (Image: Ndela Faye /Al Jazeera)


But concerns have been raised about the economic, ecological, and ethical repercussions of clothing donated to charities resulting in hundreds of millions of dollars in profits each year, writes Ndela Faye for Al Jazeera News.

Senegal is slowly beginning to resuscitate its once-booming textile industry. More than $425m has been invested in the country's largest textile factory based in Thies, about 50km west of Dakar, which closed its doors more than 15 years ago.

But with second-hand clothing available at a fraction of the price, it remains to be seen whether the revival of the local textile industry will be successful without strict government quotas on imports.

Read the full report here ...