Goodbye The Oxfam Shop
Skip to main content
Start main content

Press Releases & Updates

31 JUL 2020

The Oxfam Shop closing down on 31 July 2020

The Closure of Oxfam Shop

1977. Does this year mean something to you? 

A few notable events occurred that year. The Hong Kong Government imposed water rationing in the city due to the inadequate supply of water, for instance. Hong Kong also received an enormous wave of Vietnamese refugees and the Government began building the Hong Kong Space Museum. 

That year was also the year Oxfam opened its first Oxfam Shop in Hong Kong to encourage citizens to donate and buy secondhand items to support its poverty alleviation work around the globe. 

The Oxfam Shop has always been one important way through which we at Oxfam work with the public to fight poverty. By promoting secondhand shopping, we have also encouraged environmental awareness. In the past, we would host the Designers’ Label Week at the shop, offering designer items donated by celebrities at half or even less than half the original price. All proceeds went to Oxfam's development and humanitarian programmes around the world and has since lifted tens of thousands of people out of poverty.

Promoting ethical consumption

In 2017, we revamped the Oxfam Shop from a secondhand shop to a hub for ethical consumption. The shop was a major part of our Shop for Change campaign, which aimed to build awareness of the problems confronting smallholder farmers and producers, many of whom live in poverty. 

The new Oxfam Shop offers quality Fair Trade products from all over the world, and a wide range of organic products produced by local social enterprises. With simple shopping choices, you can ensure that smallholder farmers and producers get a better deal. And that means they can make their own decisions, control their futures, and lead dignified lives.

Over the years, we have had a lot of loyal customers who often come to hunt for treasures, while other regulars find it enjoyable just to look around. We have also had the invaluable support of many enthusiastic long-term volunteers who have helped run the store. Volunteers and customers are like old friends. 

Now, more than 40 years on, the Oxfam Shop will end a historic chapter and will officially be closing down on 31 July 2020. This was a difficult decision. In the face of the ever-changing business environment and uncertainties, and growing inequality across the globe, we need to allocate more resources to the fight against poverty in more impoverished communities. 

We express our sincere gratitude to those of you who have supported the Oxfam Shop and ethical consumption; to all Oxfam Ambassadors who have supported the shop and our events there; to our friends who have donated high-quality secondhand goods to fight poverty; and to our volunteers who have helped run the shop so efficiently and professionally.