During this past year we have been fortunate to again have a member of Luther Volunteer Corps, Matt, working in the ReStore. During the summer we have also had a young man, Gabriel, from Florida volunteering in the store while staying in Delaware for the summer. Today is the last day for both.
Matt is a hard worker who is willing to do anything needed. The bulk of his time was spent going out on the truck pick-ing up donations but he also set up our eBay account. Matt rang the register, helped customers, or whatever else needed to be done.
A willingness to do anything extended to Matt's personality. Coming from Minnesota he wanted to see as much of this area of the country as he could. Weekends often meant trips to Philadelphia, New York, Baltimore, or D. C. Matt will be taking a roundabout way back to Minnesota traveling to Boston first before heading west.
Along with traveling, Matt wanted to try any food he hadn't had before. He became such a fan of Capriotti's Sub Shop (especially the bobby) we are convinced he will eventually open the first franchise in Minnesota but he will wind up being the locations best customer.
Often we get young people volunteering at the store because it is required for school or a parent doesn't want the teenager sitting around all summer. Many turn out to be good volunteers but some are just putting in time and don't want to be here. Gabriel hasn't just been a good volunteer he has been terrific. He works hard, is polite and friendly, and he does everything he is asked in a prompt manner. He will be returning to Florida for his senior year in high school.
We will miss Matt and Gabriel but wish them luck with future endeavors.
Friday, July 27, 2012
Friday, July 20, 2012
Plans for move to new location
While work is being done on the building where we will be moving, we have been making plans for the layout, signage, advertising, and the logistics of moving items that fill a 10,000 square foot area to the new 30,000 square foot location.
Last week two of us went to other ReStores in the area to see how those stores are laid out. We got a number of good ideas and took some pictures to help us design the new store. Starting next week we will be having regular committee meetings to formulate all our plans and determine how best to carry them out.
Since the new location will be so much bigger than the current one we will have to plan for how to move things around the store. We will be getting a forklift. That will be a huge help. We also plan to put many of the larger items on wheeled platforms. It will make it easier to rearrange areas as well as take items out of the store after purchase. Many of the ReStores use these kinds of platforms so we have the designs. We will need a large volunteer group to put them together. We are hoping to get an Americorps group to help with some of the work that needs to be done.
The work repairing the building will take until the end of August. We will be able to start setting up registers, shelving, laying out aisles and making other preparations starting in the beginning of September. The actual move of everything from one location to the other is going to be what takes the most time and effort. The timetable may change but it looks now like the opening will be late October.
Last week two of us went to other ReStores in the area to see how those stores are laid out. We got a number of good ideas and took some pictures to help us design the new store. Starting next week we will be having regular committee meetings to formulate all our plans and determine how best to carry them out.
Since the new location will be so much bigger than the current one we will have to plan for how to move things around the store. We will be getting a forklift. That will be a huge help. We also plan to put many of the larger items on wheeled platforms. It will make it easier to rearrange areas as well as take items out of the store after purchase. Many of the ReStores use these kinds of platforms so we have the designs. We will need a large volunteer group to put them together. We are hoping to get an Americorps group to help with some of the work that needs to be done.
The work repairing the building will take until the end of August. We will be able to start setting up registers, shelving, laying out aisles and making other preparations starting in the beginning of September. The actual move of everything from one location to the other is going to be what takes the most time and effort. The timetable may change but it looks now like the opening will be late October.
Friday, July 13, 2012
Work being done on new ReStore location
We had a chance to go into the new location for the ReStore. The building does need a lot of work before we can move there. It needs a new roof, an opening for the customers' entrance has to be cut out of the front (pictured below to the right) and two doorways will be added for customers to get from the front section of the store to the back area ( pictured at bottom), offices and an employee breakroom will be built, restrooms need to be constructed, and the building has to be painted.
This work will take about two months to complete. After that it will take some time for us to set up signage, registers, office furniture, and everything we need to run the store. Then we will have to execute the actual move. That will take several weeks. We are hoping the new store will open some time in mid to late October.
We will continue to give updates through this blog, our website, and our facebook page.
Friday, July 6, 2012
LVC and Americorps at the ReStore
Since the ReStore tries to keep costs down by having as few paid staff as possible we rely heavily on volunteers. Most of the volunteers we get are people who are coming for a short period of time. We get a lot of high school students who are required to do community service for school. Some people come to fill the time while in between jobs or during summer break from school. We also have a few volunteers who come on a regular or semi-regular schedule.
While we could not function without all these volunteers, we do need people who are full-time employees required to work so we know the store will be properly staffed each day. Without a large paid staff we instead use Americorps and Lutheran Volunteer Corps to fill positions. Both of these organizations provide young people to work with non-profits for a year at a time and pay a stipend to help with living costs. The LVC volunteers in Wilmington come from various locations. The organization provides housing for the volunteers. The Americorps volunteers we have had at the store have all been from the area so none have been in need of housing but Americorps does offer an education award that can be used for future college courses or to pay off student loans.
We are currently in the process of setting up interviews with potential Americorps and LVC volunteers who will start later this year. In the past two years we have had an LVCer to drive the truck to pick-up donations and in two of the last three years we have had an Americorps volunteer to work in the store running the register and helping customers.
Sales have been increasing rapidly over the past two years and we are planning a move to a bigger, more visible location that we anticipate will bring in more customers. We would not be able to accomplish this with just the paid staff we have. Without Americorps and Lutheran Volunteer Corps we could not have had near the success we have had or hope to have in the coming year.
While we could not function without all these volunteers, we do need people who are full-time employees required to work so we know the store will be properly staffed each day. Without a large paid staff we instead use Americorps and Lutheran Volunteer Corps to fill positions. Both of these organizations provide young people to work with non-profits for a year at a time and pay a stipend to help with living costs. The LVC volunteers in Wilmington come from various locations. The organization provides housing for the volunteers. The Americorps volunteers we have had at the store have all been from the area so none have been in need of housing but Americorps does offer an education award that can be used for future college courses or to pay off student loans.
We are currently in the process of setting up interviews with potential Americorps and LVC volunteers who will start later this year. In the past two years we have had an LVCer to drive the truck to pick-up donations and in two of the last three years we have had an Americorps volunteer to work in the store running the register and helping customers.
Sales have been increasing rapidly over the past two years and we are planning a move to a bigger, more visible location that we anticipate will bring in more customers. We would not be able to accomplish this with just the paid staff we have. Without Americorps and Lutheran Volunteer Corps we could not have had near the success we have had or hope to have in the coming year.
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