Gloucester based social enterprise charity Emmaus Gloucestershire is welcoming Spring with an initiative to encourage people to get rid of any unwanted furniture, by offering to pick up any donated items with their free home collection service.
The charity, which enables people to move on from homelessness, works by collecting, refurbishing and reselling donated furniture at its Gloucester based store. Relying purely on furniture donations from the general public, the charity is reminding people planning on giving their home a spruce to bear it in mind, rather than throwing unwanted pieces away.
Neil Booker, Business Development Manager at Emmaus Gloucester said:
“We hope that anyone thinking of entering into the spirit of the new season with a thorough spring clean of their home will bear us in mind for any unwanted furniture or decor, rather than taking it to the tip. We understand how difficult it can be transporting furniture, so we are offering our free home collection services to everyone in the Gloucestershire area wanting to donate. Just give us a call and we can arrange a time convenient for you!”
As well as encouraging people to donate furniture, the charity is welcoming any unwanted household trinkets, especially teapots. In a campaign to collect 1,000 teapots, Emmaus Gloucester are asking people to place messages inside any teapots they no longer want, which will then be taken to France to be sold at the Parisian Emmaus Sale in June.
“We decided to launch our ‘Message in a Teapot” campaign when we realised that British teapots were worth double the price in French markets due to their popularity, generating more income for our chosen charity. As we donate any surplus funds that we receive to help others more needy than ourselves, we will be giving the profits that our teapots make in France to Emmaus International to help fund a safe house in Bosnia for victims of people trafficking.
“We thought that asking people to place messages inside would be a nice way for people donating to get involved with the campaign, and a fun surprise for whoever buys them. The messages can be anything you want them to be, and we welcome as many teapots as we can find!”
If you would like to donate any unwanted furniture or teapots to Emmaus Gloucestershire, and would like to arrange a collection then please contact them on 01452 551146.
LINK: www.emmaus.org.uk
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If you would like any more information, or to arrange an interview with Neil Booker please contact Charlotte Horsfall on 01452 348211 or email charlotte@10yetis.co.uk
Notes to editors
There are currently 19 Emmaus Communities open around the UK and 12 more in the pipeline. Emmaus Communities enable people to move on from homelessness, providing work and accommodation. As well as, food, clothing and a small weekly allowance. Emmaus is a secular movement, spanning 36 countries, each Community aims to become self-supporting, with any surplus donated to others in need.
