Cost of Living Crisis
Businesses, charities and communities trust Good360’s proven record to deliver the right goods to the right people at the right time.
$1 donated to Good360 delivers $20 of essential goods during disasters.
How Good360 is helping
Australia is in the grip of a cost of living crisis. The impacts of COVID, overseas turmoil, and natural disasters are driving record-high housing costs and escalating the price of everyday essentials including clothing, personal care, food, energy, healthcare, and petrol.
I try to stick to a tight $100 per fortnight grocery budget but that also has to pay for toilet paper, cleaning goods and everything else one might buy at the supermarket.
Good360 is the trusted approach for helping in times of such ongoing crisis – businesses, charities, and communities trust Good360’s proven approach to ensure the right goods get to the right people at the right time.
We partner with the best including Harvey Norman, BIG W, Winning Appliance, Optus, LEGO, Dettol, Colgate, NIKE, Phillips, and Best & Less and collaborate with over 3,600 charities and disadvantaged schools Australia-wide to help disadvantaged Australians.
There is a huge toll on the mental, financial, and social well-being of Australians impacted by this crisis and everyone is exhausted from the “Permacrisis,” defined as an extended period of instability and insecurity, that has been the last four years.
Immediate action is required to provide everyday essential items, that Australians simply cannot afford, and you can help.
Current cost of living crisis
After back-to-back disasters, Australians who were incredibly generous and donated to support these disasters are finding themselves facing challenging times. With rising rents and interest rates, electricity, grocery, and fuel increases, impacting the ability of many Australians to afford food and everyday essentials including clothing, and personal care.
As a result of this continued permacrisis over three million (3,319,000) people in Australia are currently living in poverty, including 761,000 children.
- 36% had used Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) to pay for essential goods
- 39% had sought financial assistance from family or friends
- 19% had sought assistance from a welfare or community organisation
- 61% of respondents were experiencing housing stress
- 16% were working more than one job to make ends meet
The Working Poor
Are we leaving more Australians behind?
At Good360 we have seen a ‘new vulnerable’ the working poor, Australians who would never have considered themselves in need of help are now finding themselves doing it tough and financial stress is affecting more Australians than the ones we measure via the poverty line.
A recent report by Everybody’s Home found that our essential workers, including aged care, freight and hospitality workers, teachers, and even firefighters were currently spending the majority of their paychecks on rent. “Those on the lowest awards would be left with just around $20 a day after paying rent, based on the capital city averages.”
One example of the pressure on essential workers from the NCOSS report is Rachel, based in Sydney, Rachel was a school teacher for over a decade before taking a job in a local performing arts centre. Despite having a degree and working her whole life, she barely has enough money to get by. Over the past few months, Rachel has experienced a noticeable increase in her household expenditure. To cut down on expenses she often sacrifices seeing friends and family, and questions whether or not she can afford some of the “basic human needs”.
I don’t go out as much, I’m not as social as I used to be. I tend to question whether or not I can afford to see people. My family live in Canberra, and so I don’t go to Canberra as much […] because that’s an added extra expense. Quite often I sit down, and I think what can I not spend my money on now, like should I get rid of Netflix? But I think everybody deserves some sort of recreation after work and, at the moment for me streaming services are my only recreation […] I often question whether or not I’m prepared to reduce that expense and how does that affect my ability to cope with life?! […] I don’t have any health insurance and I have no savings. Right now, based on my current financial status, I actually can’t afford to die.”
What about the charitable sector?
In combination with everyday Australians who are finding it tough the charitable sector has been asked to stand with Australians and essential workers through drought, fire, floods, cyclones, mouse plague, COVID and a cost of living crisis.
The sector is underfunded, understaffed, overworked and exhausted. Funding sources have been exhausted due to ongoing disasters, and the money that was available in early 2019/20 is now not available, however demand has never been higher.
Good360 supports over 3,600 charities and schools Australia-wide. We have stood through these tough times to continue supporting people living below the line of poverty, low-income Australians, the new vulnerable – working poor, and essential workers including frontline workers in hospitals and schools.
Like the rest of the sector, Good360 is underfunded, understaffed, overworked and exhausted–we have received no significant government funding despite providing over $145 million (RRP) of essential items since 2020 in support of disadvantaged Australians.
We can help the charitable sector when the need is the highest, there is $2.5B of goods that are wasted every year and these essential goods will change the lives of many Australians struggling to make ends meet.
“We’ve seen a dramatic rise in mob that are working poor. Workers can’t afford petrol, registration, and childcare – we are seeing people quit because they can’t afford to get to work. Especially in our sector as wages are so low.
Working people need food assistance, petrol vouchers, and medication subsidies. People can’t afford to fix white goods or replace kids' uniforms so they are keeping kids home from school (shame job) – then the kids are at risk of being reported. Everyone is suffering shame, stress and burnout. One of our clients committed suicide last week because he couldn’t put food on the table for his kids”
How you can help
We are Australia’s largest online marketplace for businesses to donate brand-new goods to a network of pre-vetted charities and disadvantaged schools nationally – around 3,600 are registered. Over $300M RRP have been donated by brands including Harvey Norman, BIG W, Winning Appliance, Optus, LEGO, Dettol, Colgate, NIKE, Phillips, and Best&Less.
$1 donated to Good360 delivers $20 of essential goods to Australians doing it tough during the cost of living crisis
How does it work? Charities choose the goods they need to help individuals. These goods are delivered directly to local communities, or they can pick up from local stores–we offer a solution that suits communities.
"I work for a business that would like to donate critically needed goods to communities affected by the cost of living crisis."
Please enquire how you can support communities with a donation of goods.
"I am a charity/school whose local community has been affected by the cost of living crisis and needs goods"
Please enquire here and we will support you step by step.
"I would like to support the great work you are doing. I can see work like this also requires donations of cash support."
"I need help, it is hard to ask but it has been really challenging ho w do I receive help?"
Please review our member list and connect directly with a charity or school member in your region. Let them know your needs and we will work with them to assist.
The real impact of Bringing Good Together
At each of our locations, we have seen an increase in those attending due to the rise in the cost of living. Some say that when they come to Tabitha's Closet it is like a mini Christmas, it's amazing and it's all free. One lady came to Tabitha's Closet Van recently and asked how much it was to take some clothing. When we responded with there is no cost, she burst into tears, she had been having a rough day and was blown away by the generosity of Tabitha's Closet Van.
Thanks, Good360 and Best&Less for helping us to show kindness and clothe those in need.
With a housing crisis happening, it really helped families who are doing it tough to able to have some new clothes for themselves and their children. There were also a lot of baby clothes distributed to the families.
Thank you Good360 and Big W for the generous donation
A single father of 4 young children reached out to us for assistance with clothing and food. Thankfully we were able to assist with not only these services but also alleviate the costs of data & phone bills with the Optus Crisis SIM.
Our return customers who are job-seeking have a need to be contactable and access the internet during the job application process. The 6-month Crisis SIM cards give those customers peace of mind that they won’t miss important phone calls over this time.
A massive thank you to Good360 for connecting us to this amazing resource that is a valuable tool for so many of our customers and we look forward to an ongoing partnership with both Good360 and Optus to continue to change lives, together.
This clothing was distributed to many families in need over the warmer months.
We are thrilled to consistently help our community in this way and cannot thank Good360 and its donating partners enough for your generosity.
Through your generosity, many lives are changed.