This has been a bittersweet week. On Thursday I won a directorate award for turning complex data into an impactful narrative about our operations, and yesterday marked 15 years since I started my Cancer Research UK journey.
On Sunday 31st July 2011 I started as a part-time assistant shop manager in the seaside town of Tenby, Pembrokeshire. That first day saw me shadowing a manager from another store as they introduced me to some volunteers (one of which came with the side note of "don't f**k with Gladys!") and took me through the basics - the till, the banking, and everything else that comes with running a charity shop. Well, maybe not _everything_, but those stories are best saved for another day.
From then on, the shop was mine on Sundays and Mondays, with a day shared with the manager on Wednesdays. Just over a year later, the manager left and I was promoted.
A few years later, I was given the opportunity to take a position in the head office team promoting the use of social media in shops. That 6-month secondment turned into 12 months, then 18, then was made permanent. More recently, I've been running the charity's online shop - a job I still love today.
So, why the bittersweet? Today, the Tenby shop where it all started for me closes its doors for the last time as part of the charity's second phase of store closures. Times have changed and the store, which I understand is the oldest charity shop in town, is no longer viable.
This morning I paid one last visit and met the final manager, Robbie. She's had the unenviable task of selling off the remaining stock and winding everything down. Even today, she was smiling and chatting with the regulars, and we shared stories about our times there.
Those interactions are what I missed most when I left the shop; the morning hellos with other shopkeepers, the regulars sharing the latest town gossip, and the wonderful volunteers. Over the years, we laughed, we cried, we had fun, but always did our very best to raise vital funds.
For me now, though, it's remembering what those days on the shop floor taught me, and just how hard you have to work to generate every penny that goes towards the charity's life-saving research. Harder still, in the context of these shop closures, is listening to what the data's telling you over what your heart is saying.
So, let me end by saying to all of Cancer Research UK Tenby's managers, assistants and volunteers over the years, to those in other stores that are closing, and to those in stores still proudly flying the Team Trading flag: thank you.
This article was originally shared on my LinkedIn profile.
Hi, I'm Chris. I run the online shop for one of the UK's largest charities.
