The Otago Community Hospice shop in Bond St in Dunedin has regulars - quite a few of them.
Philippa Rhodes goes to the shop about three or four times a week, every week.
She went to other op shops as well, but ''[the hospice shop] is my favourite,'' she said.
In part, that is probably because of her own experience with the hospice.
''My husband died at the hospice,'' she said.
''And the care there is amazing.''
Before her husband's death, Ms Rhodes and her daughters were able to leave him in ''respite care'' with the hospice and take a rare weekend off.
''It's not just the care at the end, it's a long process of their involvement with us.''
Ms Rhodes might be a keener-than-average op-shopper, but she is far from the only customer who frequents the hospice's seven shops weekly.
During one 40-minute visit to the Bond St hospice shop this week, at least a third of the dozen-or-so customers were self-proclaimed ''regulars''.
One, Paul Langley, comes to the shop about once a week with his two young daughters.
''My daughter Bella loves coming here, so it's a frequent place on our shopping expeditions,'' he said.
''We get lots of presents for people ... We get pictures and candles and those kind of stuff,'' his daughter, Bella, piped up.
Mr Langley said he learned about the shop after one of his friends died in hospice care.
Customer loyalty to the shop is reflected in its yearly turnover - $1 million in its second year - money that goes to the hospice's yearly budget.
Of course, many of the shop's customers just walk in off the street.
Even then, some casual shoppers were converted into hospice supporters after talking to the shop's volunteer workforce, hospice retail manager Lyn Chapman said.
''Here in the shop we do have our pamphlets about, and we have wonderful volunteers and people who work there that know about the work the hospice does ... ''
Unsurprisingly, most of the shop's volunteer workers have a personal link to the hospice that has compelled them to volunteer their time.
Volunteer Lyn McLaren has been coming to work at the shop for about a year and a-half, one afternoon a week.
She started after her mother died, she said.
''My mum passed away, and she'd been under [the hospice's] care, in the community ... They do so much amazing work in the community that I wanted to give back to the hospice.''
And it is not just the volunteers who love the hospice - Ms McLaren said she noticed most of the people who gave items to the shop were devotees, too.
Hospice chief executive Ginny Green said opening the hospice's first op shop - in Hanover St in 1998 - was almost out of necessity.
''The shops started out as a way for us to utilise donations of goods from members of the community, who would gift the hospice lots of items when a member of their family had died.''
Ms Chapman agreed.
''Somebody will come in, and talk about why they're giving, and that is because they want the hospice to benefit.''
Help Otago Community Hospice
You can help raise the $430,000 needed so the Otago Community Hospice can continue to deliver its free service by:
• Giving at www.otagohospice.co.nz/donation/
• Texting the word OTAGO to:
7003 to give $3
7005 to give $5
7010 to give $10
• Sending a cheque to Otago Community Hospice (PO Box 8002, Dunedin, 9041)
• Organising and running an event during Hospice Awareness Week, May 18-24 (or at a time that suits)
