Another charity shop to open in The Potteries Centre

A charity shop is opening a bigger and better store – inside Stoke-on-Trent’s main shopping centre. Emmaus North Staffs has secured a unit on the lower mall. It comes as the Hanley shopping centre has lost a series of big-name brands – including Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Evans and Miss Selfridge – in the past two years.

And Next is due to shut its flagship shopping centre store next month. Emmaus North Staffs is moving into the 5,000 sq ft shop from its current Cannon Street base. It will sell second-hand clothes, shoes and bric-a-brac – as well as beds, mattresses and white goods.

Its Emmaus Furniture Mine warehouse store, on Cannon Street, is also relocating to a new Hanley site. Shop proceeds will go towards tackling furniture poverty across North Staffordshire. The charity supports more than 800 households every year.

The shop will also offer free woodwork courses. Charity leader John Webbe said: “It is great to be part of the popular Potteries Centre and we cannot wait to welcome customers to experience our new store from Monday, May 23. This shop will also be different because we will have a whole area dedicated to brand new beds and white goods at discount prices.

Customers will be able to browse the models on offer and then place an order for delivery in the local area.” John added: “The new warehouse is going to be a huge benefit for the charity and the local community. Customers will have the opportunity to view and purchase larger items for the home in a bigger more accessible environment.”

The Potteries Centre has defended its decision to open a second charity shop within the centre. It comes just weeks after Staffordshire University opened a study room on the same floor. Potteries Centre general manager Amy Whittaker said: “We are always on the look-out for ways we can support charity-led enterprises and engage with local creatives, and so we are thrilled to welcome Emmaus to The Potteries Centre.

We believe that the pre-loved retail space will add real value to our visitors’ experience, while the free woodwork courses present our community with the opportunity to develop a new skill, and perhaps even forge a pathway to a new career.

“Emmaus will be situated in the lower mall, which is set to become a hub of community-led initiatives, with a number of retail, food and business projects set to open in the coming months.”