Similar firm is taking over
A popular Stirling charity shop which will close this weekend has announced that a notfor-profit group will take over the lease of its premises.
Babes in the Wood will take on the shop at STEP after Good Green Fun, who for ten years have been providing low cost, second hand children’s items to families in the city, shut their doors.
Last month the charity announced that they would be closing down due to a rise in operational costs – prompting hundreds of people to share their disappointment on social media.
Staff and volunteers met with elected representatives, including MP Stephen Kerr and MSPs Bruce Crawford and Mark Ruskell, in the aftermath to discuss their future options.
And while those at the charity said that while they were “saddened” to confirm that they would be closing on Saturday, they revealed that Babes in the Wood, who share similar goals, would be moving into the shop in the near future.
A spokesperson said: “Since announcing our plans to close we’ve been overwhelmed by the support of the local community.
“Many people have expressed how much they value having a low cost source of children’s goods on their doorstep.
“We’ve been working tirelessly behind the scenes to find an alternative to closure with the support of politicians and our landlord STEP.
“While we are saddened to confirm that we will close on Saturday, we are happy to report that we have been in discussions with a community interest company based in Bishopbriggs.
“Babes in the Wood share our charity’s goals to alleviate poverty and divert children’s goods from landfill, and in addition offer a range of other services such as parenting classes.
“We are pleased to announce that they will be expanding their services to Stirling, taking over the lease of our shop in STEP and creating job opportunities.”
They added: “We’re delighted that the Stirling community will still have an affordable source of children’s items and we wish Babes in the Wood every success.
“We would like to thank our loyal customers for their amazing support over the past ten years and hope that they will pop in to see us again before we close on Saturday.”
Since they were established a decade ago Good Green Fun has provided families throughout the area with a source of low-cost children’s goods while diverting more than 300 tonnes of waste from landfill.
They’ve also given away items and clothing to families in need by providing emergency packs, supporting a teddy appeal for refugee children and donating toys to local causes and groups through their Good Green Friday campaign.
Their last day will be on Saturday and they are open from 10am to 4pm. They say that they still have a lot of stock in-store and are encouraging anyone interested in supporting them to pop in to their STEP shop.
Babes in the Wood, who are expected to be opening in the city in the near future, recycle donated children’s items for sale in their shop.