Nasreen Akhtar - Woodhorn Newsagents

The Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal donation button is live on Payzone devices and is available for all customers to make a donation in Payzone stores nationwide. 

So far, we have received some very generous contributions and one retailer in particular has taken a lot of donations in store. We spoke to Nasreen Akhtar to learn about her life as a store owner and how she’s been spreading awareness of Payzone’s new donation button. 

Nasreen Akhtar, please tell us a bit about your story. Why did you become a business owner? 

“We’ve actually been in the retail business for around 40 years. It all started when my father bought his first shop in Scotland in a little village called Auchtermuchty. So we’ve always been around small businesses and enjoyed chatting to locals wherever we may be.”

What type of store do you own and where is it?

“We own a newsagents called Woodhorn Newsagents in Newbiggin By The Sea in Northumberland. It’s a former miners village and a fishing village so it’s really quite quaint.”

How have you advertised that you can accept donations through your Payzone terminal? Have you used any Payzone promotional material?

“We have put posters up in the window which look great, and we’ve got more promotional material on the way. I've asked my friends to post about Payzone’s Ukrainian Humanitarian Appeal donation button on Facebook and it's also been on the Newbiggin Facebook page. As well as that, we’ve also had chats with the local radio station with plans that they would advertise on air, which would be brilliant.”

What has been the response from your customers since the option to donate to the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal became available in your store?

“The customers have been very generous, we have one local lady who donates weekly. We also have someone who donates a little, daily! And I have to mention the ladies at the local hospital coffee shop who have been very generous, as they always are.”

Do you know how much your customers have donated so far? And what are you continuing to do to encourage donations?

“I'm not keeping a tally, but I always say, every little helps, and we appreciate any generosity from our customers. When a customer asks for me to put their change in the charity tin, I ask them if they don't mind putting it towards the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.”

How do you think other retailers could encourage more donations?

“They could put up posters, share the appeal on their social media profiles and thank customers for their generosity as the majority of customers are kind. The more coverage the better, I think we can all agree with that.”

All customer donations made to the DEC for the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal will directly contribute to the committees’ efforts to provide food, water, protection, and medical assistance to those fleeing the conflict. 

The new charity donation button on your Payzone device works in just four simple steps:

• On your Payzone Plus device, click the Charity button
• Click on Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal
• Enter the amount the customer wishes to donate, and press Buy
• A receipt will then be printed detailing the donation amount