Skip to content
Search
AI Powered
Latest Stories

SPAR retailer James Hall marks £500,000 Marie Curie milestone

SPAR retailer James Hall marks £500,000 Marie Curie milestone
l-r: Nigel Masters, Claire Dwyer, Sue Masters, and Mikey Goodwin for SPAR Oswaldtwistle, with Niels Dekkers, Retail Development Director at James Hall & Co. Ltd.
john kay

James Hall & Co. Ltd has marked a momentous fundraising milestone for SPAR’s charity partner Marie Curie, and to celebrate the landmark £500,000 figure, the highest fundraising James Hall & Co. Ltd company owned stores from each region of the North of England and its leading independent retailer have been recognised for their achievements and fundraising methods.

The highest fundraising independent store is Nigel and Sue Masters’ SPAR store in Oswaldtwistle, which has raised £5,271.75 since SPAR partnered with Marie Curie in March 2017.


Leading company-owned SPAR stores that have driven fundraising on the ground in communities include Sandringham Way, Walton-le-Dale (£5,302.05), Hutton Way, Carlisle (£4,555.45), East Ayton, Scarborough (£4,194.74), and Eston, Middlesbrough (£2,779.70).

Fundraising initiatives have varied from fancy dress competitions and cake stalls through to second-hand book, DVD and games tables and raffles.

James Hall & Co. Ltd, SPAR UK’s primary wholesaler and distributor for Northern England, supports Marie Curie through a number of initiatives.

These include yellow collection boxes, Marie Curie’s annual Great Daffodil Appeal in March, and the National Day of Reflection (23 March), when Marie Curie encourages everyone to wear a daffodil pin and take a moment to show their support for the millions of people bereaved during the pandemic and remember the people we’ve lost.

The company donates a penny to Marie Curie from the sale of every SPAR sandwich sold in one of the 600 SPAR stores it services in Northern England, and James Hall & Co. Ltd has helped distribute PPE to frontline Marie Curie Nurses throughout the duration of the pandemic.

“I’m surprised and very happy to be the leading SPAR independent retailer in the North of England for Marie Curie fundraising, and it’s a terrific feeling to have contributed so much to the £500,000 milestone achieved by James Hall & Co. Ltd.," said Nigel Masters.

Niels Dekkers, Retail Development Director at James Hall & Co. Ltd, said: “The £500,000 milestone for Marie Curie is a huge achievement for our company, and it is a very proud moment for James Hall & Co. Ltd. Marie Curie provide an incredible end of life care service and we are delighted to be able to support this invaluable work."

More for you

A woman enters the Selfridges department store

A woman enters the Selfridges department store on December 13, 2024 in London, England

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

Retail faces mixed fortunes in 2025 amid cost pressures, AI opportunities, and high street revival


The UK retail sector is bracing for a challenging but opportunity-filled 2025, according to Jacqui Baker, head of retail at RSM UK. While the industry grapples with rising costs and heightened crime, advancements in artificial intelligence and a revival of the high street offer potential pathways to growth, she said.

Keep ReadingShow less
unsafe soft drinks seized in Southend

Unsafe soft drinks seized in Southend

Photo: Southend-on-Sea City Council

1,100 unsafe soft drinks seized in Southend safety crackdown

Southend-on-Sea City Council officials have secured food condemnation orders from Chelmsford Magistrates Court, resulting in the seizure and destruction of 1,100 unauthorised soft drinks.

The condemned drinks, including Mountain Dew, 7-UP, Mirinda, and G Fuel energy drinks, were found during routine inspections of food businesses across Southend by the council’s environmental health officers.

Keep ReadingShow less
Charity Super.Mkt at Brent Cross Shopping centre in north London

A customer browses clothes inside Charity Super.Mkt at Brent Cross Shopping centre in north London on, December 17, 2024

Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images

Brits kindle Christmas spirit with second-hand gifts

Bursting with customers one afternoon the week before Christmas, a second-hand charity shop in London's Marylebone High Street looked even busier than the upscale retailers surrounding it.

One man grabbed two puzzle sets and a giant plush toy as a present for friends, another picked out a notebook for his wife.

Keep ReadingShow less
Nothing is more important than your Mental Elf

Nothing is more important than your Mental Elf

Lancashire Mind’s 11th Mental Elf fun run was its biggest and best yet – a sell-out event with more than 400 people running and walking in aid of the mental charity, plus dozens more volunteering to make the day a huge success.

The winter sun shone on Worden Park in Leyland as families gathered for either a 5K course, a 2K run, or a Challenge Yours’Elf distance which saw many people running 10K with the usual running gear replaced with jazzy elf leggings, tinsel and Christmas hats.

Keep ReadingShow less
A woman walks past a window display promoting an ongoing sale

A woman walks past a window display promoting an ongoing sale, on December 13, 2024 in London, England.

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

Retail sales disappoint before Christmas

UK retail sales rose less than expected in the runup to Christmas, according to official data Friday that deals a fresh blow to government hopes of growing the economy.

Separate figures revealed a temporary reprieve for prime minister Keir Starmer, however, as public borrowing fell sharply in November.

Keep ReadingShow less