Retail therapy, with empathy

Social resonance

Ye Yu is among the many who have come forward to donate.

In 2020, the 46-year-old donated an unworn Chinese-style top to the store.

After seeing someone purchase the item, Ye says she felt a sense of fulfillment that has since made her a regular donor and buyer at the store.

"My first impression was that the store is unlike other retail shops. Here, the products, employees and volunteers have stories behind them," says Ye.

"I used to understand charity as being kind and compassionate to others. But Buy42 has helped me realize that charity can empower every individual, every action and every item to make a positive influence on others," she adds.

According to Jiang, many locals used to view charity stores as nothing more than just secondhand goods outlets.

Those who frequent the stores run by the social enterprise, however, will know that this is not the case.

Besides paying for operational costs, the money raised from selling the donated goods is also used to hire staff from disadvantaged groups and organize charity events.

For example, the manager of the Jiangning Road store has a hearing impairment while the manager of the Gonghe New Road store is an individual with special needs.

The events that the social enterprise regularly organizes include activities that allow children to learn about the importance of environmental sustainability, as well as initiatives aimed at helping individuals with disabilities learn new skills and become integrated into society. It also assists charitable organizations in selling donated items that the latter have no use for. For instance, the cutlery they sell in their store was a donation received by a school for impoverished children.

For items that are particularly challenging to sell, Jiang's team organizes art workshops where people can get creative and turn ordinary items into works of art.

"I hope that our enterprise can become a century-old charity store in China and touch the hearts of many more people with its philanthropic mission," Jiang says.

"We want to allow more people to feel the value of giving back to society."