‘Consignment with a conscience’ supports Lunenburg
Lunenburg entrepreneur Cheryl Lamerson created a business plan combining her passion for second-hand items and organizing things with her desire to do something that will benefit the community.
In 2012, Lamerson and her husband started a business called the Lunenburg Community Consignment store in a small commercial space on Lincoln Street. Ten years later, the store has expanded to a 3,600-square-foot location on Pelham Street in Lunenburg.
Lamerson joined with volunteers and supporters to celebrate the project’s 10th anniversary on Aug. 15.
In the beginning, Lamerson developed an unusual business plan using a team of more than 75 volunteers of all ages to work in the store for donations to their chosen charities instead of payment.
“We sell gently used and second-hand household items,” Lamerson said in a recent interview. “When an item sells, 20 per cent of the gross sale is saved for donation to local charities. Twenty-five per cent goes to the consigner who brought the item to us and the remainder is used to operate the store.”
Lamerson said expenses include a manager’s salary, rent and operating costs. Lamerson does not take a salary.
“When I founded it, I didn’t know whether the model would work or not. My husband and I and I made the decision that we would own it. We would create it as a soleproprietorship and in that way, we would take on the risk. But we would treat it as a social enterprise so that 20 per cent that is donated to charity would be what would happen typically in a not-for-profit,” Lamerson said.
“Between August 2012 and November 2021, we donated over $185,000 to 75 local charities. By the end of November 2022, we hope our
cumulative donation will be over $200,000,” Lamerson said.
That is why Lamerson and others in the community refer to Lunenburg Community Consignment as “the Little Store that Could” and “consignment with a conscience.”
“We have over 1,025 consignors who have allowed us to recycle thousands of their gently used and antique household items: making them a little bit of money in the process. Who knows how many items we have saved from going to the landfill?”
Lamerson said the business has donated to more than 70 charitable groups, including the local food bank and Meals on Wheels, the Fishermen’s Hospital Auxiliary, cancer lap quilters, the Second Story Women’s Centre and Shaid Animal Shelter.
“We are proud to be a small, social enterprise engaged in community development, giving our volunteers an opportunity to remain vibrant and active and helping our community,” Lamerson said.
Sue Kelly of Lunenburg has been a regular volunteer for 10 years.
“I was the first one to answer the email,” Kelly said, referring to an email Lamerson sent out 10 years ago to gauge volunteer interest in the project.
“I thought it was an incredibly clever concept. I like the charitable aspect that my hours would be turned over to a charity of my choice,” Kelly said recently. “I am a converted second-hand shopper. I hate paying good money for something I can get at half the price. So, I am motivated to support this kind of endeavour because I feel it’s important. And I like the recycling aspect of the goods in the store.”
“I think it is an amazing addition to the retail fabric of the town,” Kelly said.
Kelly has supported her church with the proceeds of her volunteer hours over the 10 years by volunteering one day a week as sales staff. Recently, she also took over scheduling the volunteers while Lamerson was recovering from a medical condition.
Kelly said she gets satisfaction from interacting with customers and other volunteers and supporting charities.
“I get off on this volunteering stuff. It’s my full-time job to be a volunteer. I am retired,” said Kelly.
Kelly said many volunteers appreciate the opportunity to keep active.
“For some of them they have come off a busy career and they are used to being in motion and they are used to commitment to someone external to themselves. And as much as they may have taken a few months or years off from a paying job, they have a thirst for or an interest in being involved,” Kelly said.
Carolyn Mcallister of Lunenburg has also been a consignment store volunteer for the last decade.
And serving as the Meals on Wheels co-ordinator for the Town of Lunenburg and an organizer and the secretary of the Lunenburg Inter-church Foodbank gives Mcallister first-hand knowledge of how the donations help local charities
reach their goals.
“As far as Meals on Wheels goes, we depend on donations to keep the price of our meals provided to the clients affordable,” Mcallister said.
“We are receiving very few donated food products now at the food bank,” she said. “So, we depend on donations because we are purchasing the majority of the items we give out on food bank day.”
“Maybe at the end of this year we are getting close to $200,000 that has gone to charities from the consignment store,” Mcallister said. “Lunenburg is a small town, but it does have a number of charitable and volunteer organizations. This money has been helpful to numerous organizations and charitable committees. So, it helps the town immensely.”
Lamerson is confident other communities across the province and elsewhere might benefit from a similar combination of micro business and social enterprise.
“I think it could work anywhere,” Lamerson said.
“It could help a community and it would certainly give them a sense of working together,” she said.
Lunenburg Community Consignment is located at 119/121 Pelham St. in Lunenburg. More information is available at 902-2988274, lunenburg.community.consignment@ gmail.com and on Facebook.