Shellharbour shoppers, charities join Good360 amid soaring demand for non-food aid

Shellharbour shoppers and charities rolled up their sleeves for Good360 Australia’s EveryOne Day campaign on Thursday (17 October) to help prepare care packages of unsold new goods for those in need.

The campaign comes amid an unprecedented surge in demand for non-food aid.

While packing at the Stocklands Shellharbour event, Good360 Australia founder and managing director Alison Covington from Woonona said the event coincided with the release of its latest research.

It revealed 82 per cent of charities reported demand for essential items such as hygiene products, clothing, furniture and education supplies was higher than ever.

Alison said more concerning was 84 per cent of charities expected the year ahead to be even tougher and demand for non-food aid to get worse.

She said there was an opportunity to reduce need and waste by connecting surplus goods from businesses that would otherwise go to landfill.

“What we’re seeing now is that times are tough for everyday Australians and we want to let people know the goods we have are what the everyday Australian needs,” she said.

“It’s all those items people take for granted that other people are really struggling with today because of the cost-of-living challenges.

“People need more than just food; they need everyday essentials that support a dignified life and help them thrive.”

She said all items were new – not second hand – and included brands such as Nike through to Colgate and My Little Pony.

“It’s the everyday essentials, like Nike socks or Colgate toothbrushes to brush your teeth. But when you go to put that in your shopping basket you’re thinking, ‘Can I actually afford that?’” she said.

Alison said consumer confidence showed more people were turning to charities and 58 per cent of charities were seeing many in need coming to them for the first time.

“We have gone through floods, fires, COVID, mouse plague, cyclones – every disaster that Australians can have thrown at them. But this cost-of-living crisis need comes from the people who were donating to those other disasters,” she said.

“They were giving the $20 to support a charity. But now it’s very humbling to have to go to a charity and for the very first time you’re now having to ask for help.”

Alison said many people took the items for granted, but they were needed to “get through this little stage in life” until they were able to get back on their feet.

“The mental health and the stress that is put on families not being able to [put a present under the tree] is huge, and that’s what we’re about, making sure we can have a few presents under that tree,” she said.

“It would be very hard to say no to your child that I don’t have a present for Christmas; we don’t have the hygiene products we need to brush our teeth and wash our hair.

“It’s about the everyday essentials and it’s about a bit of joy because we need that in our lives.”

She said like food, there were a lot of goods that didn’t sell, pointing to the volume of shops with “sale” signs.

“It’s very tough trading conditions for businesses,” she said.

“So that’s what Good360 is here to do, to make sure these goods get into the hands of people who need them – and they’ve never needed them more than now.

“It’s all about people, plus our planet, so we have to protect our planet as much as our people.”

But to do that, she said funds were needed to send goods across the country. The event also raised money with $1 donated to help get $20 worth of goods into the community.

There is still much work to do. Good360 has saved $474 million worth of goods from landfill, but an estimated $2.5 billion of unsold essential household goods is unnecessarily wasted each year.

Among charities helping on the day were Family Services Australia and Gawura Aboriginal Corporation – two of 133 Illawarra charities which have received more than $11 million worth of goods from Good360 for distribution.

Family Services Australia operations director Brett Fahey said it had worked with Good360 for some time to provide goods for families. But with Christmas approaching, the level of pressure on families to provide for their children and connect with family was huge.

Brett said the packs provided a little relief for families and allowed it to put its funds towards other initiatives.

“The common things for us are material aid, housing and mental health,” he said.

“They are the huge things we’re seeing a lot of families be referred to us for or access our programs for, and it’s a regular thing now.”

He said the event raised awareness of what support was available, while also gaining hands-on support from shoppers and donations.

“We had a woman donate, and her donation meant there’ll be $2000 worth of items donated,” he said of the $1 equating to $20.

Financial Services Minister and Member for Whitlam Stephen Jones, also on hand to help, said Good360 was working well to reduce unnecessary waste and support others.

“I know how tough it is for locals right now,” he said. “That’s why the Albanese Government is providing cost-of-living relief for all Australians including tax cuts, energy bill rebates, wage rises and cracking down on dodgy discounts at supermarkets.”

Donations for EveryOne Day can be made via the Good360 website.