There are lots of benefits of visiting a repair cafe; helping to reduce waste, improving mental wellbeing, and also saving money. This blog post showcases some examples of where visitors have used their local repair cafe to help save them money, something we all know is so important right now.

The Ukelele 

This ukulele belonged to the visitors grandfather and she has been wanting to learn to play. It had no strings but now that it has been fixed, she can start lessons. The item holds lots of sentimental value as well as monetary value. Vintage ukuleles retail for £150-£300 on average which is a huge cost saving! 

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The Dyson Vacuum Cleaner 

This Dyson vacuum had lost suction power and was no longer working. It was fixed at Conwy repair cafe in the lead up to Christmas and saved the visitor over £200! 

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The Analogue Radio  

Anna bought this radio in 2008 for £1 and loved using it. The radio is analogue so has a distinctive sound that brought back many happy nostalgic memories of her mum who always listened to the radio in the kitchen. Anna said she has ‘had the radio longer than her husband and it has survived several home moves. It was used every day until it stopped working a few weeks ago. ‘  

Luckily the radio could be fixed and saved Anna from having to buy a new one. Speaking about here experience at the repair cafe, Anna said ‘I’ve have been through a lot with this radio. I am delighted it is working again as listening to it makes me feel I am home.  My son and I enjoyed our visit to the repair café as he was able to also have his toy till repaired. I was really impressed and appreciated that the café had taken the time to cater with gluten free and non-dairy items as my son does not eat dairy. ‘ 

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The Childs Bike 

This bike was broken as the seat kept turning around and brakes were not working properly. 

The visitor anticipated that a new bike would have cost them cost about £90. The bike had been broken for 7 months, having it fixed at the repair cafe saved mum from having to buy a new bike and the young boy who the bike belonged to was delighted it was fixed! The visitor said ‘it was a nice feeling not to have sent the item to the tip, with the added bonus of the money I have saved’ 

The Hairdryer 

This hairdryer had stopped working completely.  The visitor had attempted to fix the hair dryer herself but wasn’t confident enough to open the casing.  If it was not repaired the visitor would have had no option other than to replace it with new one, which she anticipated would have cost at least £30-35.  She was very happy the hairdryer was repaired and relived not to send it to landfill!

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If you’re worried about the rising mortgage costs, rent, higher energy costs or tackling debt, we’ve brought together a guide of useful organisations who may be able to help you.  

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