Orkney shop owner raises £3,000 for charity after mistakenly ordering 720 Easter eggs

29 March 2024, 07:41 | Updated: 29 March 2024, 10:51

Orkney shop owner Dan Dafydd made headlines after a whopping 720 Easter eggs turned up at his door instead of the 80 he meant to buy.

And with a population of only 494 on the island of Sanday where he lives, the delivery is enough to give every islander just about one and a half Easter eggs each.

In an attempt to get rid of some of the chocolate treats, Mr Dafydd, who owns Sinclair General Stores, decided to raffle off 100 of the eggs to one lucky winner and help raise funds for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI).

The 39-year-old has already raised more than £3,000 for the charity, which he told Sky News last week, is very much "ingrained" in the community on Sanday.

Nestle UK & Ireland has also agreed to match donations of the raffle up to £10,000 with the aim of helping the fundraising effort reach £20,000 by Easter Sunday.

"What started off as a silly mistake on my behalf has brought so much fun, laughter and joy and for this I am so happy," Mr Dafydd said.

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"With the help of Nestle UK and Ireland we have managed to raise loads of money for the RNLI and with a huge push and help from the public hopefully we can reach our new target of £20,000."

He said that since gaining media attention, people from all over the world has been calling his shop to buy raffle tickets.

Beth Lucas, marketing director for confectionery at Nestle UK & Ireland said the company "couldn't resist getting involved" after hearing of Mr Dafydd's "predicament".

"It's incredible to see how a simple mistake can turn into an opportunity to make a positive impact," she said.

There is still time to enter the Easter raffle before the winner is drawn on Sunday. Anyone who wishes to buy the last remaining tickets can do so via a link on the Sinclair General Store's Facebook page.

(c) Sky News 2024: Orkney shop owner raises £3,000 for charity after mistakenly ordering 720 Easter eggs