Walking into ReLove’s Sydney headquarters, you could be forgiven for thinking it’s just your regular second-hand furniture warehouse.
However, while the space is certainly packed to the brim with all the things to make a house a home, it’s also filled with second chances and fresh starts.
Indeed, the charity isn’t just providing rescued furniture and household essentials at no cost to those in need, it’s helping people rebuild their lives after homelessness, domestic violence and incarceration.
Founded by former architect Ren Fernando and ex-banker Ben Stammer, ReLove wasn’t part of a grand master plan for the pair. Instead, it came about due to their shared desire to make a difference.
“We talk about ourselves as an accidental charity,” Stammer told WHO. “We never intended to do this. But once we started, we couldn’t look away.”
The duo were leading a community running group when they began looking for practical ways to support people in their local area. They started by collecting running shoes, before building relationships with organisations including the Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre (WAGEC).
That’s when they discovered an overlooked problem. People were finally receiving housing, but many were moving into completely empty homes. “We put the call out to furnish five homes,” Stammer says. Instead, their community responded with far more furniture than they ever imagined. Within months, they had helped furnish 35 homes.
These days, clients visit the warehouse with a support worker and, with the help of volunteers, find everything they need to turn an empty house into a home. From big things like couches, beds and kitchen tables, to small things like candles or crockery, the opportunity to choose is in their hands.
For many clients, it’s the first time they’ve had the opportunity to create a space that feels safe and personal after experiencing huge trauma.
“It’s about dignity,” Fernando explains. With homelessness and domestic violence rates rising every year, finding yourself in need, Stammer says, really “could happen to anyone”.
The founders have seen firsthand how quickly circumstances can change. One recent client was a professor of law specialising in domestic and family violence. She had previously referred women to ReLove through her work, before finding herself needing the charity’s support.
“She said, ‘I can’t quite believe it’s me, but thank God for you,’” Fernando recalls. It’s a powerful reminder that housing insecurity doesn’t discriminate. Relationship breakdowns, financial hardship, natural disasters or the rising cost of living can leave almost anyone needing help.
And while ReLove’s mission is centred on helping people, its environmental impact has become just as significant. The charity rescues quality furniture from homes, offices, hotels and corporate relocations that might otherwise end up in landfill.
“We didn’t realise the scale of the environmental problem when we started,” Fernando says. Hotels replacing hundreds of rooms at once often need to dispose of sofas, beds, tables, lamps and kitchenware – all still in excellent condition.
Rather than going to waste, those items now help furnish around 25 to 30 homes every week. Because everything is donated, ReLove can fully furnish a family home for around $1000 in operating costs, while providing approximately $15,000 worth of furniture and household essentials.
Along with donors and corporate partners, the organisation still relies heavily on volunteers. A few days after a July appeal on social media for pots and pans, generous supporters had already filled the shelves.
“It’s community in action,” Stammer shares with WHO. With demand continuing to grow, the founders hope to expand across New South Wales and eventually interstate, although ongoing funding remains one of their biggest challenges.
Still, the organisation continues to make a significant difference every time it furnishes a home. After all, every couch, desk and bookshelf represents something far greater than a household item, it represents a new chapter for someone rewriting the story of their life.
If you or your company would like to be part of ReLove’s mission, visit relove.org.au for information on volunteering, donations, partnerships and other ways to get involved.
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