Cheep Shop on verge of closure as manager says farewell this weekend

Cheep Shop manager Ella Grant said she'll be sad to leave but family and friends have told her she can't go back on her word to retire from the business. Photo / Lewis Gardner

There's no going back for Ella Grant as her time as manager of the Cheep Shop comes to an end this weekend.

The second hand shop that raises money for Bird Rescue is also set to close for good as Grant, who signalled her departure a year and a half ago, has not been replaced.

"It's the end of an era," Grant said.

Her family and friends have made her promise not to go back on her word that she will finish at the Cheep Shop this weekend.

She has been manager of the shop at its current site on Taupo Quay for 12 years, but she was also involved with the shop for a couple of years before that.

The store has been on a decline over the years with the loss of car parks nearby and an increase in traffic making it hard for customers to get to it, Grant said.

It has gone from being open as much as three days a week to just the Saturday (10am to 2pm) and its revenue has dropped to a quarter of what it once was.

If any of the volunteers from the past wanted to come in for a coffee their last chance would be this Saturday, Grant said.

The no-frills shop has no electricity, but the neighbour had been donating power so Cheep Shop staff could have an electric jug operating as well as one light.

"For a joke we've got the customer torch ... it's just a way of acknowledging to the customers we have no overheads."

There were three to four regular volunteers who worked at the shop but none wanted to take on the manager's job or work the till.

The manager's job involved about nine hours work a week, five of those at the store during its opening hours on a Saturday with a bit of weekday work to organise donated goods.

She also managed the till on Saturdays and priced goods to be sold.

If the Cheep Shop found a new site that got more foot traffic it may be able to open again and have a paid manager, Grant said.

Grant has joined the Wanganui Model and Miniature Club and will now put her attention towards a project creating a model of a Swedish cottage.