Teenager’s smart career move
A 19-year-old is helping mums save money on clothes for their little ones.
Sarah Harper took her career into her own hands and opened the doors of Merry-Go-Round on Margan Ave in New Lynn with her mother and sister about a month ago.
The concept of the store is mothers bring their used women’s and baby clothes into the shop to exchange for credit in the store to buy something else.
‘‘It’s like an op-shop but we only sell high quality items,’’ Harper says.
She took the idea from her mother Sandra Millman, who has four daughters and once had a similar business in Hastings.
She knows the frustration of putting in an ad for bulk clothing on buy and sell pages and getting queries from people regarding just one item.
‘‘We sort through a bag of clothing. Put a price on it and if it’s not for our store it can go to charity or the person can get rid of it elsewhere,’’ Millman says.
‘‘The real work for this has been put in by my daughter she washed and ironed in the clothes and got us figuring out our plan.’’
Harper is a former Green Bay High School student. She says she cried when she found out she was the only one of her friends not going to university.
‘‘I wasn’t getting employed in retail jobs because everyone wanted experience so I thought I’m going to create my own business,’’ she says.
The teenager says she is quite pleased.
‘‘Now people are quite impressed at what I’ve started and that I’ve created my own job.’’
Ultimately, the Titirangi resident would like to increase the florist side of her business and expand the trade and exchange clothing.
‘‘Growing up, I was always interested in plants and landscape gardening. I started helping out when I was 12-years-old,’’ she says.
Her mum is helping her start up the business, but it will eventually be her baby. Harper’s sister Rachel, 18, works on weekends to save up for a car.
Merry-Go-Round sells plants, flowers, some new and used women’s and children’s clothing.
There is a range of maternity wear, babies and toddlers shoes, books and other accessories.
People are welcome to bring in a bag of their used clothing to be sorted for sale. the