• Qld opens biggest Salvos Store
The Salvation Army has opened its biggest Queensland store at Morayfield, north of Brisbane, much to the delight of bargain hunters.
Thousands of people flocked to the store’s grand opening on Thursday 16 November, with people happily lining up in long queues to purchase their goodies.
The new store, which is located inside the HomeCentre on Morayfield Rd, will allow locals and savvy shoppers the opportunity to buy new and pre-loved fashion, accessories, homewares, furniture, bric-a-brac, books, craft supplies and more.
All funds raised from the store will help fund The Salvation Army’s many programs and services which help people in need.
Salvation Army Area Manager Stuart Estreich said this store is almost double the size of the previous one.
“This store is 15,000 square metres and replaced the previous store we had just down the road, which was about 850 square metres,” Stuart said.
“We closed that store in February, so we are glad to open this brand-new store in a new location at the HomeCentre.
“This is now the biggest Salvation Army store in Queensland and one of the top five biggest Salvos Stores in Australia.
“At any time, we can have between 23,000 to 25,000 items on show for our customers to browse through.”
Store Manager Emma Edmond said the feedback she has received from the public so far had been heart-warming and positive.
“We knew our grand opening was going to be big, but we didn’t expect it to be so big that we had a line of people snaking around the store,” Emma said.
“While we were closed for those few months, I would keep looking at the comments online and would read people saying how much they missed us.”
One of the unique things about this store is the dedicated craft section.
“A lot of other stores don’t have a recycled craft section, but we wanted to embrace it because we know a lot more people are becoming more sustainable and upcycling things,” Emma said.
“We sell lots of recycled materials like scrap fabric packs and craft packs, so they don’t end up in landfill.
“For example, we sell painting kits that have second-hand paints that are still good to use.
“We also have lots of wool for people who are into quilting and knitting.”
*An edited version of an article courtesy of the Morton Daily newspaper website. Author: Ashleigh Howarth
