Five Years of Zikkies. Built by You.

Five years.

It still catches me off guard when I say it out loud.

Five years of donations arriving at our door. Five years of volunteers giving their time. Five years of customers choosing secondhand first. Five years of conversations, small discoveries and quiet connections formed inside a little thrift store in Coburg.

To mark the occasion, we ran a birthday sale and an interactive window with a jar of lollies.

Watching people stop, lean in to count, scan the QR code and submit their guess reminded me of something I've been reflecting on for a while. Zikkies has always been about the pause. The moment someone slows down, looks through the window and steps inside.

Where it started

When Zikkies first opened in Coburg, the idea was straightforward: a thrift store powered by community, rooted in the values of generosity, sustainability and care for one another.

What we didn't fully anticipate was how much the community would pour into it.

People didn't just shop. They donated thoughtfully. They volunteered their time. They told their friends. Over time, Zikkies became something harder to define: Part shop, part community hub, part act of ongoing charity.

The Prophet ﷺ said:

"The best of people are those most beneficial to people." (Al-Mu'jam al-Awsat)

I've seen that principle walk through our doors in many forms. The sister who drops off neatly folded clothes every few weeks and quietly leaves a small donation on her way out. The volunteer who has been with us since nearly the beginning and now feels like family. The customer who found a piece that reminded them of their grandmother's home and left with tears in their eyes.

These moments are what five years looks like.

What five years has taught me

Zikkies has taught me that barakah (blessing) is real, and it shows up in ordinary places.

In Islam, we speak of Sadaqah Jariyah (ongoing charity) whose reward continues even after the person passes away. I believe Zikkies carries that quality. Every item that passes through this store, every kind interaction within these walls becomes part of a chain of benefit we may never fully see.

And that's enough. More than enough.

Thank you

To everyone who has donated, volunteered, shopped, shared a post, or simply told someone about Zikkies. Every contribution, no matter how small it felt, mattered.

You are the reason this place exists.

What comes next

Five years in, I feel like we are only just getting started.

The next chapter of Zikkies is still being written and it belongs to all of us.

Community work is slow and sometimes difficult. But it's forever.

Here's to the next five years, Insha'Allah (God willing).

Wassalam,

Nabila