History

Pat Farmiloe started the sale in 1976 in a very small way and it has become huge! The money that has passed to Cancer Research UK to date now exceeds  £147,600!

The first sale took place in one of the bedrooms at Pat’s house with a few friends contributing to the sale. As the sale grew Pat had to move to larger premises at the Church Hall in Weston Green. It sufficed well but it too became too small, the site was sold for development and we found larger location. The next was Thames Ditton Youth Centre in Mercer Close – we had so much more space and it was a dream -for a while! The public queued around the car park in the morning to leave their goods for sale and then they started again a good hour before the sale at lunchtime. The Youth Centre was fast becoming too small a space for us and then the local authority decided to close the centre and we were forced to find new premises again.

They did us a huge favour and we relocated to the new sports and drama complex in Esher College.We now have more than enough space to display all the goods without it being squashed.

The NCT have copied the concept of the sale and run good as new sales nationwide – quite a compliment!  

Due to ailing health, Pat has had to step back from the organisation and there is a new Committee running the sale and carrying on Pat’s vision. She is still around, as are her daughters and grandchildren who regularly travel to help and buy at the sales!

It’s difficult to calculate how many families have benefited from our sales but in the last 9 years over 1600 families have sold their outgrown possessions, and in that time over 40,000 people will have attended the sales!

The Sale

On the Friday evening before the sale we lay out the hall with tables and dress rails prior to the influx on Saturday morning.  Starting at 8.30 am there is often a queue of people waiting to deposit their goods for sale.  All goods are signed in and the 60 or so helpers proceed to empty boxes and sort everything into age and gender categories.

Anything sold at the sale has the owner’s label removed and retained so that we can calculate our sales.  Due to the huge number of items at the sale some clothes become separated from their labels.  These items will be displayed on a table at the end of the sale, clearly marked “Lost Labels”.  Please check these tables.  If these are not claimed by the following Friday, they will be passed on to local charities or people in need.

We constantly strive to improve the running of the sale for all concerned.  For many years we have struggled with sorting and re-sorting the unseasonal and rejected items.  Anything rejected or unseasonal will not be displayed and will be placed on separate tables labelled “Rejected” and “Unseasonal” at the end of the sale.  A note will be placed in your box.  Please check these tables.  Anything not collected will be donated to a local charity.

At the end of the sale all items not sold are sorted back into boxes containing the owners’ names for collection the same evening, and the tables and rails are returned for storage.

The Monday and Tuesday following the sale is spent sorting the labels for sold items into alphabetical order, then into names so that we can calculate how much we owe our donors, less the 25% contribution for Cancer Research.  Collection of money will generally take place on the Thursday of that week.

Our Supporters

We are grateful to our local business supporters:

Esher College and the premises staff for their help during hire of the premises.

Gascoigne-Pees in Esher for their continued support in advertising our sales, and for their generous donation each sale.

Winkworth Surbiton – Estate Agency for their generous donation towards printing and advertising costs.

EKA Stationers in East Molesey who for many years have kindly subsidised and printed 4,000 leaflets that are distributed to local families via nurseries, playgroups and nursery/infant/junior schools in the area; also with printing over 100 posters that are put up around the area.

Brewer & Son in Surbiton who, for many years, have donated the plastic sacks we distribute to buyers.

Marks & Spencer in Kingston for the loan of barriers for the payment queue.

Ajax Sea Scouts and David Creigh for the use of their van for many years.

Dodds Contractors for the loan of a van and driver on our sale day.

L’Affamato in East Molesey, and Waitrose in Esher, for subsidising/donating disposable cups for our refreshments stall.