Artist's repainted bottle behind charity shop 'boom'

A charity shop manager said his store smashed its daily targets after a social media star attracted hundreds of customers through its doors.

On Friday, the Nottinghamshire Hospice store in Gordon Road, West Bridgford, was the subject of artist Sophie Tea's weekly charity shop hunt.

In a bid to support the store, she found an item and redesigned it, before posting on social media, inviting her fans to visit the shop to have a chance to buy it back.

Mark Robinson, community shop manager for the charity, said Tea's visit caused a "boom" in customers.

Tea, who has more than one million followers on Instagram, came to Nottinghamshire for the 72nd edition of her charity shop hunt.

Prior to the arrival of her fans, she went into the store and bought a water bottle for £2.50, which she then painted in a local park.

She then returned to the shop and raffled the bottle off, with the winner paying the same amount as it was first bought for.

Robinson, who manages the shop for Nottinghamshire Hospice, which provides free end-of-life care, said: "I hadn't heard of Sophie before so it was really exciting to see what she does.

"Today wasn't a great day. It wasn't looking like I was going to achieve my target and then Sophie shows up and boom, it was amazing.

"I'm really happy."

During the event, Tea also drew a small design on any item bought by her fans from the charity shop.

She said that, as well as supporting the charity, she hoped the event helps art be more accessible to her followers.

"I love the idea of democratising access to the arts because art isn't just for the privileged few, it's for everyone," she said.

"Typically, art lives in a gallery, but how I've gone about my career is different.

"We're just getting art into places that otherwise it might not have been before.

"That's important."

The winner of Friday's raffle was Chloe, from Nottingham, who said she had followed Tea for years.

"I'm very shocked," she said.

"I wasn't expecting it at all.

"I'm actually looking to buy a house at the moment, so when I have somewhere I'll find a nice place to display it."

Listen to BBC Radio Nottingham on Sounds and follow BBC Nottingham on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.