Garage sale for Maddie

JARROD Nation is taking advantage of Hobartians’ love of bargains to raise funds for a charity close to his heart.

Mr Nation took over Salters Hire, the 50-year-old hire company, in February and noticed thousands of items were not being hired out.

With new stock on the way, Mr Nation said it was time for a clear-out.

The company will hold a garage sale tomorrow. But the sale is about more than clearing stock.

Mr Nation is the founding chairman of Maddie Riewoldt’s Vision, a charity established by the Riewoldt family after Maddie’s death in 2015 to raise money to find new treatments for bone marrow failure.

Maddie’s brother, recently retired St Kilda footballer Nick Riewoldt, has thrown his support behind the garage sale, appearing in a social media video to promote it.

The video was viewed more than 8000 times in less than a week.

Mr Nation, whose wife is Riewoldt’s cousin, said it was the first time Salters’ ex-hire stock was being offered for sale. “Last count, it was over 5000 pieces [including] cutlery, plates, glasses, jukeboxes, couches, ottomans and outdoor heaters,” he said.

There are 100 festival trestle tables that Mr Nation said had been sitting in the company’s Launceston warehouse since they were last hired out 10 years ago.