Run by the University’s Sustainability Office, Te Oraka is so much more than a thrift shop. Their kaupapa is to make sustainability accessible to everyone through a series of events and initiatives. Jesikah Triscott, their Kaitakawaenga (Engagement Team Lead) told Critic Te Ārohi about Te Oraka’s mission and what gets people through the door.
Although Te Oraka operates under the Sustainability Office, it has its own cost centre – meaning what goes around comes around for this not-for-profit enterprise. Every dollar spent on that $12 tweed blazer is reinvested into the sustainability space rather than other areas within the Uni. "Whatever you buy here, you'll benefit from it further down the track," Jesikah explains.
‘Drop for Good and Shop for Good’ is one of Te Oraka's most popular events, offering a convenient drop location for departing flats whose necessities won't fit into Jetstar's 20kg check-in bag limit. During Flo-Week, Te Oraka sells these items to incoming residents at mega-affordable rates. It’s first come, first serve, and the atmosphere gets intense: when the floodgates open, prepare to scrap someone over a set of drawers.
The initiative captures the heart of Te Oraka’s kaupapa: one student’s trash is another’s treasure. Jesikah tells Critic that the initial inflow of cash allows them to "kick off the year with a few of our bigger events, and start paying our student employees for their time." Jesikah hopes that this model can be applied to more sectors of the University down the line, such as how kai could be handled on campus. “Does it have to be profit-driven,” she asks, “or do we just want to feed people who might be hungry?"
Te Oraka first opened in UniPol's old weights room on Anzac Ave. Reflecting on the space, Jesikah jokes, "How the heck did we make this look like a cool thrift shop? It is like an abandoned hall." While the warehouse is still used by Te Oraka to sort through donated goods, store excess stock, and host Drop and Shop for Good, at the beginning of last year Te Oraka took over the Sustainability Office's space on the corner of St David's Street and Little Leith Street – a much needed upgrade. Jesikah relishes the new location, calling it "a saving grace, because we used to have to spend all of our energy trying to convince people to walk down to us. Now we just need to convince people to just pop in and have a coffee."
Another initiative Te Oraka runs is a pay what you can Bike Grab every Tuesday, working alongside Southern Youth Development. Donated and reclaimed bikes from landfill are matched with students in need of affordable transport. After registering through a Google Form in Te Oraka’s Instagram Linktree, students are invited to the office to make some minor repairs with guidance. Jesikah says that the overarching goal of the Bike Grabs is to give students access to more sustainable forms of transport and recycling unused goods, all while helping students "build more skills around bikes."
When they first began the Bike Grab initiative, Te Oraka sold pre-repaired bikes under a ‘pay what you can' basis. Jesikah noticed that after giving students the option to work with Southern Youth Development to repair their bikes, people began to pay more for them, theorising it could be down to students building a relationship during the repair process.
Jesikah encourages students to come during opening hours to drop clothes off. An additional bonus is that for every three items accepted, they give you a free swap from the shop. She encourages students dropping off goods to be mindful about what they’re donating: "Sometimes things come to the end of life and that's okay. We just don't wanna be the thing that sits between a student and a skip."
Te Oraka is open every weekday from 11am to 1pm when students are on campus.
Follow them on Instagram @te_oraka to stay updated and join their social club to look out for volunteer opportunities.