- Multi-charity retail store returns to Bluewater as sales soar at brand founded by Maria Chenoweth and Wayne Hemingway
- More than 287,318 pre-loved items sold that may have otherwise gone to landfill
- Pre-loved fashion trend continues to grow
Charity Super.Mkt, the ‘department store for second-hand style’ launched 18 months ago by Maria Chenoweth and Wayne Hemingway, will return to Kent-based shopping centre, Bluewater, this month.
The brand’s return to Bluewater follows the success of its first pop-up in September last year, where over 16,575 items of clothing were sold. Other recent Charity Super.Mkt launches have included Glasgow’s Buchanan Galleries, Brighton and Reading.
The opening of the 7,080 sq ft store responds to the growing popularity of pre-loved shopping and will create a unique retail experience for guests looking for quality, affordable fashion.
The Charity Super.Mkt concept has proved hugely popular thanks to its curated collections of second-hand fashion. To date, 287,318 items of clothing have been snapped up, generating sales which have just reached £2.5m, creating a much-needed additional income stream for the likes of Shelter, Cancer Research, Age UK and TRAID.
James Waugh, Centre Director at Bluewater, said: “Charity Super.Mkt is a proven concept that has been exciting shoppers across the UK for the past year and their ethos aligns with our continued commitment to becoming a more sustainable retail destination, so we’re delighted for them to return for three months this summer.
“The store was a big hit with customers last time it was at Bluewater and the trend for pre-loved fashion continues to grow, so we’re sure it will prove to be another popular addition to the centre.”
Wayne Hemingway, Charity Super.Mkt Co-founder, said: “We learnt a lot about the Bluewater shopper in our last pop-up, and the charities have been putting aside some fab items of very cool and affordable second-hand clothing and accessories. So please come along from the evening of the 25th July, grab yourself a fashionable bargain, every pound you spend is a good pound.”
Charity Super.Mkt co-founder and TRAID CEO, Maria Chenoweth, commented: “We set ourselves the challenge of getting charity retail into spaces and places that it hasn’t been before, and Bluewater is one of those places. The generous Bluewater shoppers helped raise so much for important causes such as end of life care, research into improvements in cancer treatment and looking after children, the aged and animals as well as supporting mental health and homelessness issues. It’s time to do it all again.”
Charity Super.Mkt will open at Bluewater on 25th July and will be located on the Upper Rose Gallery, between SDMN Clothing and FatFace.
Charity Super.Mkt Facts:
Since it launched just over a year ago, Charity Super.Mkt has:
- Sold 287,318 second-hand items, and in so doing…
- Stopped 63,800kg of clothing going to landfill
- Prevented 738,781.2 Kg of CO2 emissions
- Saved 131,339 cubic metres of water
- Funded 3,000 hours of nursing care or over 2,600 hours of bereavement support calls from Marie Curie
- Paid for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to gain part time supported employment in one of Brandon Trust social enterprises and learn valuable vocational and life skills
- Funded a Shelter emergency helpline for 15 days, answering around 1,700 urgent calls
- Enabled Cancer Research to fund 192 more days of Cancer Nurses
- Funded 1,280 hours of specialist care for Havens Hospices nurses for a patient in their own home at the end of their life
- TRAID used its proceeds to support a new project providing schooling for the children of waste pickers at Dhaka’s Matuail landfill site
Charities supported by Bluewater’s Charity Super.Mkt store are:
- Traid
- Havens Hospice