Green Scheme Certification 2023
The Salvation Army Family Store, Whangaparaoa
4/26 Karepiro Drive, Stanmore Bay, Whangaparaoa - Ph: 09 424 2153
We selected The Salvation Army Family Store because of the huge challenges they face and their enthusiasm to take action. They were one of our pilot businesses under our “Retail based” survey. Open 9 am to 5 pm every day except Sunday.
The Salvation Army Family Store
Second Hand stores as an industry divert a lot of waste from landfill but often also end up with a lot of waste from others and spend huge amounts on landfill fees. A few of the actions that the Salvation Army team discussed with the Green Scheme team were exploring textile recycling options and using other methods like staples to replace the plastic swing tags on clothing items.
We selected The Salvation Army Family Store because of the huge challenges they face and their enthusiasm to take action. They were one of our pilot businesses under our “Retail based” survey which we undertook on 2 August 2023.
Actions Taken at the time of the Survey
Recently updated all light bulbs to LED
Have a “Second Chance” rack for unsellable but good items for $2 which many are cleared
Have an air dryer in the bathroom
Marked or custom branded items are harder to sell so go on the “Second Chance” rack for $2
Every Wed a lady collects various items to use in classes for repurposing at Estuary Arts
A lot of cleaning products are donated - not aware of refill station at HCZW
Some carpooling by staff or shared cars
Are flexible with work times to fit in with public transport and walking availability
Do cut cords off electrical items for recycling
Whilst there appear a lot of actions in the list below this is a challenge for this type of store which is also run by volunteers which needs to be taken into consideration.
Actions Not taken at the time of the Survey and would like to consider
Don’t currently officially measure how much waste but usually 10 large bins a week - 4% of profit goes on waste costs so would be good to reduce
There are no specific steps currently in place to actively reduce waste - its hard with volunteers
Eftpos machines auto print receipts
No recycling service just a skip - space is hard to have separate bins but would like to
All waste goes in the skips for the dump
Clothing labels are plastic coated and attached with a non-recyclable plastic tie
Have loose goals around elimination of clothing waste but not much action yet
Don’t measure carbon footprint - don’t know how
Don’t recycle e-waste
No food waste practices but little food eaten
No recycle bins only waste bins - want to talk to the Body Corp about this
Would like to have clearer options for measuring waste to consider reducing
May look at paperless eftpos
Would like to sort space for separate recycling bin(s)
Would like to look at alternatives for labelling clothing but have high volume so needs to be practical and quick
Would love options on outlets for clothing waste
Might consider training some staff re Stef’s lost of alternative clothing recycle options
Might consider filling rag bags - maybe do it in house or just put out for people to collect?
Interested in HCZW waste audit
The Salvation Army Family Store 2023 Certifications
CLICK HERE for explanations on all available certifications
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The business has made a significant effort to move away from single-use practices and items and towards re-use instead. An example of this is establishing a mug library or borrowing system to reduce the use of single-use coffee cups.
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This business is excellent at recycling. Following a waste audit, this business has proven to be able to identify and sort what can and cannot be recycled in curbside collection and makes an effort to recycle the items that cannot. An example of this is recycling their TetraPak, batteries, soft plastics and other items with Whangaparāoa Recycling Centre.
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This business is taking steps to reduce its single-use waste. Once a business has demonstrated a significant and sustained reduction of single-use practices and items, it can become a re-use champion or be close to zero.
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The business has measured its average power consumption over a month and taken action to reduce its power usage and has proven to do so significantly. Actions can include changing lightbulbs, upgrading to low-power appliances and adapting heating and cooling systems.
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This business uses eco friendly products and takes eco friendly actions in the cleaning of their premises and goods.