100 years of Vinnies Shops: Our beginnings

Today, the St Vincent de Paul Society has hit an incredible milestone worth celebrating - 100 years of Vinnies Shops in Victoria.

While our shops today are known for everything from pre-loved fashion and furniture to books and hidden treasures, their beginnings looked quite different. Read our history below:

In the 1920s, Vinnies members across Victoria began collecting bottles, paper, rags and old metals, selling them to raise funds to support people experiencing poverty.

On 1 October 1926, this work led to the opening of the Waste Products Bureau (yes, this was our original name) at 214 King Street, Melbourne, marking the beginning of what would eventually become the Vinnies Shops network we know today.

A year later, due to the sale of the rented King Street premises the shop relocated to a purchased property at 155 Maribyrnong Road, Ascot Vale and it is still there today.

By 1939, the network had begun to grow beyond Ascot Vale, with locations opening in Fitzroy, Brunswick and Collingwood.

As donations increased, so did the need to collect and distribute them. In 1943, two trucks were purchased to collect donated goods across Melbourne, and in 1956, a new depot in Richmond increased the Society’s capacity to store and distribute donations.

By 1960, the Waste Products Bureau had become one of the Society’s main sources of income for its good works. Eleven vans were collecting clothing, furniture, footwear and other donated goods, which could either be provided directly to people in need or sold to raise funds for the Society’s work.

The network continued to grow rapidly. By 1972, there were 32 Vinnies Shops across Victoria, and in the years that followed, the shops also began supporting overseas aid efforts.

Today, there are 119 Vinnies Shops across Victoria. What started with members collecting bottles, paper, rags and metal has grown into a network that gives pre-loved goods a new life while generating vital funds to support Vinnies’ Good Works.

One hundred years on, every donation, purchase and volunteer shift continues a story that began in Melbourne in 1926.