We have had to come to the very difficult decision to close our Blaenavon shop with effect from 23^rd March. This means that after 19 years and 3 different locations on Broad Street, Blaenavon we close for the last time on Friday 22^nd March.

We didn’t know we had a Blaenavon shop until our then CEO, Andrew Richards received a phone call from one of the trustees asking Andrew when we opened the shop as he had just been in there and didn’t recall being told about it.

Needless to say Andrew was perplexed to be informed there was a shop operating in our name without us having any knowledge of it.  Fearing the worst Andrew immediately drove from Tredegar to Blaenavon to confront the imposters!

Upon arrival at 73 Broad Street Andrew was confronted by a cheerful lady, Margaret Goodwin who confirmed she opened the shop several weeks earlier.  She explained that her and several friends had been so moved by the support and care one of their friends living in Brynmawr had received from the Hospice of the Valleys that they had decided to try and raise money for the charity.  The friends had agreed a short rental at the shop which they were funding themselves. They told Andrew they had money there for the hospice and he had saved them a journey in taking the envelope full of cash for them.

The shop was almost immediately adopted by the Hospice of the Valleys and became an official charity shop.

Since 2005 the shop in Blaenavon has remained in Broad Street but has moved between 3 locations in that time.  Many wonderful volunteers have supported in keeping the shop going during this time, some are sadly no longer with us, but others have remained from the very beginning and others have joined in more recent years, all playing such a vital role in helping to raise funds to support our patients and their loved ones.

Sadly since Covid we have continued to see a decline in the footfall in the high street in Blaenavon, which has reduced the sales in the shop. We have been very fortunate in more recent years to have had rent free premises, however with the cost of utilities so high, the profit the shop was able to make was continuing to decline.

We will be very sad to see this shop close and would like to sincerely thank the people from the local community for continuing to support, over the years you have been very generous with your donations of stock and also your purchases. And without the support from our incredible and dedicated volunteers we wouldn’t have been able to maintain a shop in Blaenavon.

Thank you all so much for your kindness and we very much hope you will come and visit one of our other stores which are not a million miles away.

www.hospiceofthevalleys.org.uk/our-shops/find-your-local-shop/