Britain’s first chain of charity sports shops to open in Salford

Salford Shopping Centre is set to welcome a new charity shop aimed at giving back to disadvantaged and disabled children in the community.

Britain’s first chain of charity sports shops, Sports Traider, will sell hugely-discounted branded sportswear, whilst also giving back to local young people by opening up vital employment opportunities and investing in sports participation projects.

With an open date scheduled for the end of August, visitors to Sports Traider can expect to find plenty of household names on offer such as Regatta, Kickers, Tokyo Laundry and Speedo. Most items are priced at £5 or less, and all purchases have a direct and positive impact on the Salford and surrounding communities.

Sports Traider isn’t the only charity initiative ongoing in Salford, with the recent announcement of Renew charity shops in Trafford, Oldham and Salford.

Sports Traider, which has been supported by several sporting legends, was set up 12 years ago with a mission to enable young people to fulfill their sporting potential whatever their background or ability.

Since then the charity has provided over 168,000 hours of sports and life skills coaching and donated more than 1 million units of sportswear and equipment to children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

One of the winners of the BBC Sports Personality Of The Year and founder of the charity Sports Traider, Lance Haggith, started the charity after seeing the health benefits that sport provided to his own children and the positive impact on their social skills.

He recalled how the charity began: “It started off in a youth centre. We were primarily looking after young carers so they could come to us and be children. I noticed children coming in without coats or appropriate sports footwear because they couldn’t afford them so I started off by going into schools and asking if they had any unwanted equipment or training shoes and then I distributed it to children in need.

“However, I needed more revenue to help more children, so I came up with Britain’s first charity sports shop.”

Sports Traider now promises to provide opportunities and support young children in the Salford community, and to create even more success stories. Previous children who have benefited from the charity have gone on to play sport at national levels; one young footballer even went on to become captain of an U18 premiership football club and another child represented the country in the Olympics.

As well as providing funding for sports activities, Sports Traider also champions inclusive employment in their stores by offering employment opportunities to ex- offenders and people with additional needs.

Lance argues that “Kids that get into sport tend to grow up into more well-rounded people and Sports Traider wants to make sure there are opportunities for current kids in the Salford area. So help us to help your community.”

Sports Traider Charity exists to give young people employment and sports participation opportunities, managing a professionally run chain of charity sports shops staffed by employees and volunteers. The charity uses the funds from these stores to invest in sports participation projects.

Salford Shopping Centre, owned by Praxis Holdings, is already home to both local and national retailers including Boots and Wilko. The centre has over 80 indoor shopping units plus an indoor market and is open seven days a week.