For over two years, Olio-er Philip from Kent has helped run Gravesham Repair Café – a place where broken lamps, torn jackets and tired toasters are given a second chance.
Their mission is simple: fix what they can, keep items out of landfill, and create a warm space where neighbours can chat over coffee while they wait.
“We hoped to create a feeling of community whereby our guests could have a coffee and biscuits and chat with fellow guests and our repairers.”
The cafés charge nothing for repairs – or the coffee. They rely entirely on donations and local benefactors, and on the goodwill and skills of volunteers.
Whenever the café needs a tool or specialist piece of equipment, Philip turns to the Olio app.
“To keep costs down, whenever we need a tool or machine, we always post a message on Olio just to see if there is anyone who might have something we need and would like to move it on to us.”
A simple ‘Wanted’ post has brought in a knife/blade sharpening machine, more than three sewing machines, advertising poster holders, a coffee bean grinder, a garden waste shredder and even a large box of over 30 mugs.
Whenever Philip writes a Wanted post, he explains that the item is for Gravesham Repair Café.
“This gives me an opportunity to explain in a sentence what we do and also to invite readers to attend one of our Repair Cafés with their broken items.”
The connection often flows the other way, too. When a guest brings in something that cannot be repaired or simply isn’t economical to fix, Philip suggests they try Olio instead. If they’re unsure how to use the app, he helps them create the post.
What might have ended up as waste becomes another opportunity to share locally.
For Philip, one Olio request stands out in particular. He once posted asking for an overlocker – a specialist sewing machine requested by the café’s textile repair volunteers.
The post received a response from a woman named Elizzy, who not only offered an overlocker but offered to deliver it. Philip showed her around. They started chatting and before long, she became part of the volunteering team.
“In all, we have four or more volunteers who first connected with us through helping us source items on Olio and then later decided to join us as volunteers, in addition to guests who have read the posts I’ve made and come along with items to be fixed or just to see what we do whilst having a coffee and chat. What a great way for us to get the Repair Café message out to our community and to engage with Olio users.”
Some repairs mean more
Repair, Philip believes, is about far more than fixing broken things. It’s about valuing what we already have. It’s about care, patience and refusing to give up on something – or someone – too quickly.
One repair story has stayed with him.
A couple once brought in two beautiful mechanical snow globes they had bought years earlier on a family holiday to New York – one for them and one for their daughter. Their daughter had sadly passed away, and the globes had stopped working.
“It was a very emotional repair for our volunteers and the owners of the two snow globes, now that they could be reunited in full working order.”
When the snow began to fall again inside the glass, it wasn’t just an object that had been restored. It was a memory. A connection. A small piece of a family story brought back to life.
He encourages anyone curious to look up their local Repair Café, bring along something that needs fixing, or simply pop in for a coffee and a chat.
“Repair Cafés are about fixing domestic items and clothing, saving you money and preventing domestic items going to landfill, as well as creating community and friendship.”
For Philip, Olio is woven into the way he keeps the café thriving – a simple tool that helps neighbours help one another, keeping useful items in circulation and bringing new faces through the door.