• For several months, the Joujou reintegration site has been collecting, sorting and upgrading toys.

  • A shop, which offers hundreds of items at low prices, has just opened on the Ile de Nantes.

The fluff is very soft and smells clean. In the Barbies, not a hair sticks out nor a shoe misses. These toys seem straight out of the factory, and yet ... Chez Joujou, a solidarity shop that has just opened its doors in the Labo Diva, République district in Nantes, the hundreds of books, puppets and board games on sale have already lived one or more lives. "Everything you see comes from collections that we have been organizing for several months with companies and individuals in the Nantes region," says Diane Bégard, the coordinator. There are often things in very good condition, when you know that the use of a toy is only eight months on average! "

However, like other initiatives that are flourishing in France, there is no question of putting everything back on the shelves as is.

In a workshop a few hundred meters away, on the site of the former MIN, around ten reintegration employees from the Atao association are responsible for monitoring everything.

Methodically, they observe, handle, test, but also clean the tons of goods that pass through here.

If strictly speaking they do not repair the broken toys (which cannot be revalued, approximately 50%, is sent to the most appropriate recycling channels), they track down the missing parts and recompose the incomplete boxes.

Pawns, dice, hourglasses ...

The pearls or the balls which arrive in bulk are thus put in jars, the Playmobil of all kinds recomposed in batches, while a large drawer of doll clothes makes it possible to dress the bathers who sometimes arrive naked. “For board games, we have a gigantic library of pawns, dice, hourglasses…, adds Diane Bégard. As for the puzzles, we get help from passionate volunteers who put them back together! If a few non-essential parts are missing, we obviously indicate this on the box. "

In the shop, which offers a wide variety of items for all ages, a color code lets you know the condition of the toy before buying it.

The longer he has lived, the less expensive it is.

At Joujou, a toy will never be sold for more than 50% of the new price.

"With quality, advice, and a reasonable price, we want to be a credible alternative, to make people want to take the plunge," explains Diane Bégard.

We know that there is still a social barrier to buying a second-hand toy, even though it is an eco-citizen act!

"

Open on Fridays in July, the store will see its opening hours extended from the start of September.

Joujou's objective is to collect 12 tonnes of toys in 2021, and 20 in 2022.

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A collection at Solilab

Before new collections at the start of the school year, individuals who so wish can drop off their toys all summer at Solilab.

They must be in good condition, as complete and as clean as possible.

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