A new thrift shop has opened in Bermuda, and the manger in charge has 40 years of retail experience.

The idea for the Pals thrift shop, on Point Finger Road, Paget, was brought to fruition by Colleen English, executive director of the cancer charity, with help from her colleague Darlene Phillips.

The women and other volunteers have spent tireless hours getting the premises ready.

Pals, formerly known as the Patients Assistance League and Service, was founded in 1980 to provide service to allow cancer patients to remain in their homes rather than being hospitalised.

Joan Cabral has been hired as manager for the shop. She has a wealth of knowledge from 40 years of retail experience. She previously owned Hera Boutique, on Front Street.

Ms Cabral explained her reason to become the new manager with the organisation. She said: “I applied for the position because I wanted to do something in my later life like this. The position is part-time, so I am able to still spend time with my mom who has dementia.”

She has enjoyed working with her new team. The shop opened earlier this month and the feedback has been positive.

“Everyone has nice things to say about the store when they visit. They say the place smells nice, the prices are low and the clothing sizes are separate which makes things easy to find.”

There are a variety of items being sold that are cost-effective including kitchen and glassware, countertop appliances, radios, luggage, linens, bed and drapes, towels, men’s and women’s clothing, children’s toys, lamps, coffee tables, and solid wood tables.

Ms Cabral said she would like to give credit to all the volunteers who came out to help support the thrift shop, with some people going “over and above” regular hours.

“It was a brief period of time where we had 3½ weeks to turn it into a shop. The volunteers put in tremendous hours and effort. We have at least a dozen volunteers, and one volunteer did 88 hours which we are extremely grateful for.”

Pals would like to thank the public for their supporting providing donations and buying items.

The shop is open in Saturdays from 9am to 3pm,

For more information e-mail to thriftshop@pals.bm