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The Free Store

  • Tēnā Tātou!! A wee update from us...

      29 July 2022
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    Over 72 days this year, we rescued 15,5318kgs of quality kai (food) from being wasted in landfill, and contributing to CO2 emissions. All this food was redistributed among our local community in Pōneke (Wellington).

    Though we are discontent with the systems that mean this much food risks being wasted, and that our community face food insecurity daily, we deeper our connectedness by responding to this immediate risk & need.

    As our volunteers collect, weigh, sort and hand out this kai, we grow closer by working together. As our community gathers around warm cuppa's while waiting for each neighbour to choose their food, we come to know one another :)

    Nō reira, ka tuku ngā mihi ki tō mātou tūao, tō mātou kaituku hoki!

    So, sending a big acknowledgement to all our volunteers, and all our donors!

    THANK YOU ALL!!

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  • The Free Store Has Re-Opened!

      22 October 2014

    The Free Store is now open again - our doors swung open on Monday 13th October! We have spent the last few years converting an old rusted 20-foot shipping container into a brand new purpose-built space to operate out of, at no cost. At market price this project would have costed $100k but with the help of many businesses who donated all the materials and labour our newly completed store is on site at 211 Willis Street, Wellington. Our volunteers daily collect the food from our 25 suppliers (and growing!) between 3.30-5.30pm as they close up shop. We then open to the public at 6pm. These are the generous local businesses that donated their materials, skills and time to the shipping container project: - Designgroup Stapleton Elliott (Architect) - Jamie Boyle @ Practical Building Solutions (Building Team) - Kevin O'Connor & Associates (Structural Engineer) - TRITOflex (Waterproofing & UV-insulation solutions) - Veka uPVC - Aluminium Joinery Wellington (Joinery and Glass installation) - Abodo Wood (Timber Cladding) - Jacobsen (Flooring) - Tinakori Flooring (Install) - Resene (Paint) - Croft Combined Carriers (Container transport solutions) - Twin Lake Industries (Sheet Metalwork) - BOC (Welding supplies) - Forman Building Systems (Kingspan Vapour & Thermal Insulation) - Elephant Plasterboard - GIB (Plaster supplies) - Fortress Fasteners - GSL (Flashings) - Remnant Painters & Decorators - Mitre 10 MEGA (Plywood) - Metco Engineering (Stainless steel powdercoated sign) - Beveridge Locksmiths (Lockbox solution for keys) These are our current food suppliers: - Southern Cross Restaurant & Bar - Caffe L'affare - Havana Coffee Works - Leeds Street Bakery - Victoria Street Cafe - Thunderbird Cafe - Arabica Cafe - Cuba Street Fruit Mart - Elite Bakery - Ti Kouka Cafe - Neo Cafe - Mulberry Garden - Enigma Cafe - Barista Cafe - Rahzoo Cafe - Artcraft Bakery - Cafe Breton - Domo Sushi - Lava Cafe - Relish For Food - A+ Sushi - Preservatorium Cafe & Cannery - Haya Cafe & Delicatessen - Cafe Kyriani - The Canteen Cafe

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