Meet Many Happy Returns Jersey, a lending library of reusable party supplies to minimise waste and benefit our community.

We caught up with founder Tasha Cormack and son Noah Cormack to find out more about the origins, how our Coop Community Fund helped and the sustainable success story Many Happy Returns Jersey has become.

The story starts with the Tasha's previous venture, a group called Journey to Zero Waste Jersey. Seeking to share ideas and inspire others, she stumbled upon a post about sharing party dishes. The concept struck a chord, leading to the inception of Many Happy Returns Jersey.

“I saw a post from somebody in the UK called the Party Kit Network, about sharing party dishes and it was literally just a box of Ikea dishes and the amount times I thought oh my goodness, the amount of times we’ve just bought paper everything and just thrown it in the bin. That’s a really quick, easy win.”

Demand for party supplies surged as Jersey came out of lockdowns and gatherings returned. Many Happy Returns Jersey blossomed, fuelled by the generosity of the community and donations of party supplies.

“When things started opening up again, somebody gave me a load of baking tins from a business that had stopped baking and it started from there really … some things are bought second hand and others are just given to us.”

Above: Party supplies at Many Happy Returns Jersey's current home at the Oxygen Therapy Centre

Many Happy Returns have benefitted from our Community Fund on two occasions, helping the initiative at the very beginning and more recently supporting with shelving for an expansion at a new premises.

“I actually applied twice. When it used to be in our house it was really overwhelming and it was getting to the point when it was filling up the lounge. So, I applied for some funding for a little shed in the garden that was Many Happy Returns Jersey. More recently I thought I could see if I could get any help with the shelving to make best use of the space here (their new location at the Oxygen Therapy centre).

“We started with nothing. We started with no money at all. So it was trying to do it with very little cost. We had some funding since we became a registered charity but before that I was just on my own, so getting the money for a shed, I’d go up to B&Q looking but it wasn’t going to happen, so it (the Community Fund grant) really helped.”

Above: Many Happy Returns Jersey collecting their Environmentalist of the Year award and the 2022 Pride of Jersey Awards. Photo credit: JEP

The success of the Many Happy Returns Jersey led to Tasha and Noah winning the Environmentalist of the Year award at the Pride of Jersey Awards in 2022. Fast forward to the present and the catalogue of reusable party supplies now available is vast, covering many themes and occasions, including plates, balloons, cutlery, tablecloths, as well as party games, decorations, props, backdrops and even characters such as Peppa Pig.

Peppa Pig and some of our Coop Grand Marché St Helier team at a recent awareness day for Many Happy returns Jersey

“Last year we had 240 bookings. In the summer it can be about 12 or 13 in a week, then we have to stop there!”

The story is a great example of how change can begin at a grassroots level and, fuelled by the collective efforts of passionate people, can make a sustainable impact. View more about the charity and a full catalogue of items for hire at https://manyhappyreturnsjersey.co.uk/

Need funding for a community, charity or eco project? Apply before 30 April for our Spring Community Fund payout here.