Morning, guys.
The other two shops are open.
I'm on my way into Caerphilly.
Sorry, I'm running late.
I got the rest of my pasta from Home My Pasta yesterday.
So I got that for dinner.
We had loads.
The servings were lovely and the pasta was beautiful, guys.
Honestly, I wouldn't say it, right?
I wouldn't say it.
You know me.
I will be honest about it.
But it was really nice.
It was nice to pop in and see Aunt Cox's pies.
It certainly was nice to pop in and see the doughnuts and see how they're getting on doing there as well.
On that estate.
And I think that's where we'll have a little look for a donation centre, I think.
Because the prices are pretty good.
I would have liked to have been over the other side of Bedworth so other people could access us.
But I think the prices there are better than the prices over the other side of Bedworth.
We've got tons of toys in, guys.
I've never known so many toys.
It's unreal.
Unreal, guys.
I got about ten bags of toys that I pulled out last night.
Now I didn't know what was in the bag so I just pulled them open and then did all over the place.
Because I wanted to get a washing out.
Some of the teddies and stuff and stuff need to go and soak in.
So I could get everything sorted for me to go in this morning to do them.
So I might have a few toys everywhere.
Risca's low on baby clothes but they'll sort that out.
Because we'll take some from the other shops once we find out what Dan needs and then we can refill Risca for you.
Last week I'll fill a bag for a penny because we're just going to bag it up and go through it another time.
We're sick of seeing it all now.
Daniel got paid in chocolate yesterday because he had a guy that was picking up records.
He only had three so Dan said he couldn't have them because he said he'd fill a bag for a penny from the trolleys out the front.
So Daniel got paid in chocolate so he was happy.
Because the old man said no no I'll give you one of these instead.
Don't have to pay the penny.
That's just our niche.
Our advertising niche that we've got to fill a bag for a penny.
We're happy enough for it to go for free.
So I'm going in now.
We've got Pokemon Week on.
I've had a couple of boy men laughing emojis on the Pokemon cards.
But not on all of the Pokemon cards.
On specific Pokemon cards.
Because they are the Pokemon cards that they want and they think I'm stupid enough not to know that.
And you look pathetic laughing at a Pokemon card fundraising event.
Which is priced at £3.50 which clearly states all the fundraising.
They've been priced at that price because you would be funding a pack of nappies.
To help a family in need.
So you now look pathetic the two of you.
I've gone onto their profile and done a few little pathetic laughing emojis on their profile pictures.
To make them feel...
We are the cheapest around for Pokemon cards.
I don't know what you say.
Because I've been looking.
That's why I pulled them out.
I'm not dull.
I've done my research.
I've done my research.
I've done all four pound of cards.
Minimum.
But they are the cards they want for their set look.
So they thought they'd do laughing emojis.
Instead of reading the fundraiser and realising that if they bought it.
The money would actually be going towards a pack of nappies to help a mother in need.
What I should do is put their pictures up and show how pathetic they are.
But there we are.
There we are.
I'm busy today.
My toys to price.
I want to get these little toys priced.
Yusuf have given me some decent boxes.
I always have good boxes offered.
I want to get these little toys out.
Because I think mums have bought the big presents.
And I think next week they'll be looking for small stocking fillers.
Or filler sort of presents.
Or little things to go with what they've already got.
So I'm thinking if I do these three or four boxes.
By the time I get them cleaned and priced.
Now they're only like little things.
Figures will be dearer.
You know that because of the boy men.
And the seller on us.
But if we got things like little bits of furniture.
Little balls and things.
Things that you would put in stockings.
Or you'd hide around the tree.
Or bits and bobs.
Or goes with this.
Or whatever.
If I get that priced up.
Then I think mums will be in next week.
They may be looking through those boxes for smaller stuff.
We're going to do filler bag for a fiver on the toys.
I've never seen so many toys in my life.
I could open a toy shop.
Well a toy warehouse.
That's why I got open.
Honestly I've never seen so many toys.
And I've been looking at other people's pictures.
Like upcycled to Vine.
Chloe's cupboard.
The toy box is always full isn't it.
And other people's you know.
Pages.
And they are absolutely swamped with toys.
Everybody is this year.
And that's brilliant because we've still got half of them in storage.
Which means that when we get ourselves a little bit more sorted now warehouse wise.
We can maybe get our toy library up and running.
Which would be good as well wouldn't it.
You know we want to get that up and running.
But we need a separate venue for it all now.
But we've got everything.
You know us we're usually backwards.
We've got everything we need to crack on.
But we haven't got the buildings.
And that's what we need now is the buildings.
But there'd be no point just doing a toy library in Caerphilly because the toy box is already there.
Very successful.
Good friends of ours.
Been very supportive of us since they started.
But it would be nicer to have an open toy vine maybe.
Because I don't think you've got anything like that open toy vine have you.
Not like a toy box where you go in and you take the toys for free.
But you can go in and borrow them.
So you can go in and borrow the board games.
You can go in and borrow the babies toys.
You know the first toys you get were like the lights and the buttons.
You know and then we can sort out things like dolls houses and Sydney houses and the sets.
So you've got the furniture and you can borrow it.
And then when they get fed up of it.
You can bring it back and swap it for something else.
Bring it back and swap it for a Batman set or bring it back and swap it for a bike.
You know.
That's the plan.
Anyway that's the plan to do that.
But obviously we wouldn't do it down this thing because we've already got the toy box.
But yeah wouldn't that be good.
Or Moorthaway or somewhere like that.
Somewhere different again now as much as we've been very grateful and thankful in the other areas.
Wouldn't it be nice to do that.
We've got the stuff.
I've got the racking.
Remember we went down to Swansea.
Neath I can't remember now.
And we bought all that racking.
To put the toys on.
We're still in the donation centre.
We haven't had a chance to do it.
We were going to set it up in the donation centre.
But the donation centre is full of donations.
So we need extra venues now.
And obviously this is why we've gone down the road.
We've gone down the road of publicising ourselves a bit more and becoming a CIC.
Because we need the funding now to expand.
But if there's anybody out there looking to invest in us.
We've got a sustainable source of running a business.
A not for profit business already in place.
Because we've been doing it for five years.
And we're still expanding.
Everybody else is winding down and shutting down.
But we're expanding.
We would have still been at Blackwood now if I hadn't of had a change in landlord.
I'd have still sat there waiting for a high street shop.
So we wouldn't have gone.
The only reason we left Bryn Maw is because I couldn't get anybody to run it up there.
I thought I'd still be at Bryn Maw now.
And to be honest I was getting on my nerves.
Because they weren't listening to what I was telling them to do.
And if they'd listened to what I was telling them to do it would have been more successful.
But they were doing it their own way.
Marking it badly.
Genuinely not listening.
Letting people come in and pay a donation price for the dog food and the food.
That's not what we do.
You need to be a customer or a donator to keep the stock rolling.
To keep the shops going.
In order to host the pet food banks and the food bank and the rest of it.
Anybody can sell cheap dog food and cheap nappies all day long.
But that isn't the point.
The point is you need a sustainable business behind it.
To pay for the bills and the shops.
To host the food bank and the nappies.
That's the whole point in it.
And we had two sets of people up there who neither of them listened.
And we were like, it's beginning to be an headache up there.
And it's a good half hour 45 minutes away for me to drive up there and check on every day.
So I've still been up there.
You know.
I've still been up there.
Still doing our system up there.
But it was just too much of an headache for me at the time.
But Pontypool has been successful because they've run it the way we should.
Risca has always been successful because they run it the way they should.
Caerphilly has always been successful because it's been run the way they should.
And so has the donation centre.
That's always been funded and more avid by the sales outside.
Because it's been run exactly as we've said it should be.
So yeah.
You know.
Like I said.
We're still looking to expand.
There isn't anybody expanding right now.
You know.
Other than massive companies.
And some of them are folding.
It's only us that's expanding.
And I mean we're sustainable.
You know.
We are a sustainable business.
I could do with some investors.
We need to manifest some top investors guys.
Because we need bigger buildings now.
You know.
And this is what we said in our ITV interview.
Is we've got too big.
Too fast.
And we can't cope with the demand.
We just cannot cope with the demand.
And the amount of work that's coming in.
And I mean we're all willing.
We're all willing to do it.
It's just.
We're exhausted.
We just cannot keep up with it.
So.
You know.
The warehouse will be additional to the shop.
I think what we need in each area.
Newport.
You know.
Newport.
Cullion.
Coldecott.
You know.
Banger.
West Wales.
I don't know.
Wherever we go.
Right.
We're going to need a shop.
At least one shop.
And a donation centre behind that shop.
That's what we're going to need.
Because of the volume of stuff that we get from those particular areas.
It's no good saying I'll take on a shop in Carmarthen.
And I'll feed it from Point and Fife Donation Centre.
Because Carmarthen will be full of donations anyway.