Brotherhood Stores Blog

We are hoping to give our staff and volunteers some well-earned time off!

"I've been looking for this for some time," said the man about the book. "My wife and I were quite emotional when it arrived in the post." Some books are worth a lot more than even the words and illustrations on the page.

Mike Tucker, the great-nephew of Brotherhood founder, Fr Gerard Tucker, keeps the family connection alive through volunteering. Here he reminisces about his famous relative and talks shop about our community stores.

Australians are a generous bunch with 300,000 tonnes of unwanted clothing and household goods donated each year!

David only ever had casual work – a couple of weeks here, a month there. Volunteering for the Brotherhood of St Laurence, however, changed all that. It led to his first permanent job. And best of all, he enjoys it.

Almost a quarter of people who lifted themselves out of poverty are poor again one or two years later, according to a stark new analysis by the Brotherhood of St Laurence's Research and Policy Centre.

For more than a decade Hunter Gather Fitzroy has been an icon in the second-hand fashion scene. Through its eclectic mix of bric-a-brac, local artisan creations, books, records, fashion and accessories, Hunter Gatherer pays homage to pop culture past and present.

A successful electrical engineer in Iran, Mohammed was forced to leave his wife and children behind and flee for his life. Political unrest saw him escape to Australia by boat.

Headed to the races this spring? According to research analysts*, the average race goer spends $1287 on each individual visit to the four-day Melbourne Cup Carnival, with $53.2 million spent on fashion and beauty across the Spring Racing Carnival.

At first glance, our City Hunter Gatherer store is just another vintage op shop and social enterprise, but it actually holds a wealth of Melbourne history.