An Orkney shopkeeper is turning a costly order error into a fundraising campaign after ordering 640 extra eggs by accident.
Dan Dafydd, owner of Sinclair General Stores on the isle of Sanday in Orkney, had only intended to purchase 80 Easter eggs for his local village shop, but when his order arrived he was stunned to see 80 cases of eggs adding up to 720 individual units.
After the mistake was confirmed by the seller, he decided to “take it on the chin” and turn his oversight into a fundraising campaign for the RNLI.
Speaking with GB News, Dan explained why a refund wasn’t an option.
“With the big events like Christmas and Easter,” he said, “it generally involves us ordering six months before the event.”
“So six months ago I went online and I ordered what I believed to be 80 Easter eggs, which would be more than enough to service a little shop like ours.
“I thought nothing more of it until two weeks ago, when a lorry turned up with 80 cases of Easter eggs.”
Dan Dafydd, owner of Sinclair General Stores on the isle of Sanday in Orkney
Sinclair General Stores
Dan says his first thought was to begin processing a return, assuming the seller would be fine with rectifying his mistake but because he had made the purchase six months in advance, the wholesaler was unable to enable the return.
Despite spending considerably more than he had intended, Dan was buoyed by the “giggling, chuckling and local mickey-taking” that followed and in brainstorming a solution, he settled on a fundraising giveaway.
“The 100 egg lucky square competition started,” he explains and in the spirit of solidarity, “one of the local businesses, Orkney Retreats, put a big post out in order to aid our ticket sales.”
Before long, Dan’s predicament was being discussed across the islands and local media before popping up in timelines right across the UK.
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Dan Dafydd explained why he couldn't just refund the eggs
GB News
Dan set a goal of 200 tickets, which he points out was a “lofty ambition” for a small island community, but he was pleasantly surprised by the outpouring of support that followed.
Thinking back, he says, “200 seemed like quite a lofty target but we sold out within the week so we introduced another 100 [eggs] and now they’ve sold out so we’re going to just keep adding tickets while people still want them and raise as much money for the RNLI as possible.”
The island of Sanday has a modest population of 494, so Dan has been hard at work to bring a workaround to ensure the rough Hebridean seas are no barrier to potential donors.
“At the moment, you can still walk into store and buy tickets,” says Dan, “but if anyone [else] wants them they can drop us a message on our Facebook page and we can send them a payment link”.
“It sounds pretty archaic, but that’s the only way we can work out how to do it with my limited technology skills.”
Sinclair General Stores are donating all proceeds from the raffle - already sitting at more than £300 - to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.
The RNLI plays a vital role in the safety of remote island communities such as Sanday in the Outer Hebrides, a necessity akin to ambulances in our vast cities.
Dan explains why the RNLI was an obvious choice when choosing a beneficiary for his blunder: “Our manager at the shop, Barbara Moody, she’s the President of the Sanday branch of the RNLI.”
“We do run fundraisers relatively frequently,” he goes on, “so that’s the affiliation there.”
“They’ve not acknowledged us yet, but I’m sure they will greatly appreciate the donation they’re about to get.”
Summarising his viral experience, Dan says he still gets a kick out of other people getting a laugh at his expense, especially as it will benefit a good cause in the end.
“I’ll just take it on the chin,” he smiles, “and it’s nice that my stupidity can bring a bit of good as well.”
If you would like to win 100 easter eggs for just £1, you can message the store on their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/sinclairsanday