Daisy Chain megastore exceeding expectations say charity bosses

Daisy Chain's Johnathan Pickard and Neeraj Sharma opened the store at the start of April

A charity that supports autistic people says its new two-floor charity shop megastore has "exceeded expectations".

Daisy Chain, which began in Stockton, provides and funds services for families across the North East.

It opened the store in Gateshead at the start of April stocking what it said was "the most diverse range of donated products seen on the high street".

The Team Valley store - on a retail park - is the largest of its kind in the UK, the charity said.

Daisy Chain began in 2003 and currently supports more than 5,000 families.

The 2,136 sq m (23,000 sq ft) megastore sells second-hand clothing, home wares, toys and electrical goods.

Money raised from the shop was "key to maintaining and expanding services", the charity said.

Fifteen staff have so far been employed with plans to create more opportunities due to early success, bosses added.

Young shopper Daniel said: "It's nice, there's a lot of space"

Daisy Chain CEO Neeraj Sharma said he was excited for the charity to "branch out into something bravely different".

"In the charity sector, all organisations are striving to gain maximum income from all of their funding streams, and when it comes to retail they often go small and launch online," he said.

"To be able to see and touch the product you're going to buy, as well as see the real-world impact of the money you're spending...

"There's nothing else like this on the high street - we're sure of that."

Business development manager Johnathan Pickard said the charity was "extremely pleased" with the megastore's high footfall, which would help the charity meet growing demand.

"It's increased dramatically," he said.

"A lot of our support requests are for much more complex needs now.

"This is the ninth busiest retail park in the country. For a local charity to be on here is extremely exciting.

"Sales have been exceeding expectations thus far, and we've received so much support from the local area, allowing us to create more volunteer and employability opportunities, in addition to recruiting additional staff."