Lee business owner swaps Black Friday sale for huge Basics Bank donation

A Lee-on-the-Solent business woman has swapped the Black Friday sales for a good cause for the local community.

Susan Bonnar, who runs The British Craft House – an e-commerce platform for British handmade artisans – recently used her business for a good cause.

During Black Friday, she pledged to donate one item to the Fareham and Gosport Basics Bank per sale, and encouraged others to dig out any unwanted items that she could donate.

The Basics Bank is a charity, which provides short-term practical support to anyone in a crisis or emergency situation, through providing those in need with basic food, toiletries and other essentials.

Susan ended up filling up four cars to the brim with food and essential items, such as shower gel, deodorant, long-life milk, biscuits, tinned foods and more.

Some of the donations came from local organisations, such as RunTLC, a running group based in Lee, and the Lee and Stubbington Slimming World group.

Susan said: “People have been so generous and it’s lovely to see. We probably had around 30 or 40 times the amount of items that we had when I first started this initiative. It’s incredible.

“We see a lot of bad news and from what you see on social media and the TV you’d think it was all bad, but there is so much good that goes on that people don’t always see, and the Basics Bank, as well as everyone who has done their bit to help us donate so much to them are a great example of that.”

Susan set up the initiative when she first started The British Craft House, initially donating items herself, but this year she decided to buy an item per sale the website got on Black Friday itself.

She said: “While everyone is wrapped up in shopping and chasing the discounts, I felt like it was important to help the community in some way, and with Christmas coming up it is such an important time to do so.

“Not only that, but Black Friday is often not practical for small businesses, especially when they’re handmade. Handmade products often take a lot of time, skill and precision and dropping the price can undermine the hours of work, years of practice and labour of love that has gone into each piece.

“Many handmade businesses operate on thinner profit margins since they prioritise quality materials and ethical sourcing. Offering deep discounts would either cut into these thin margins or, in some cases, mean a financial loss”

Since Covid, the demand for essential items is constantly increasing, however, food banks like the Fareham and Gosport Basics Bank struggle to keep up with demand.

Although the Basics Bank does not accept direct donations to its facility, there is a donation bin at St Faith’s Church in Lee, where the public can drop off any donations.