Profit & Planet: Junk2Go proves one person’s ‘junk’ can make another person’s home
Tuesday, 30 December 2025
Profit & Planet is a series profiling finalists on the Sustainable Business Awards’ Next List, an annual list of the best innovators, entrepreneurs, projects and organisations in the green space.
Junk2Go earns its money removing “junk” from homes when owners are having a clear-out, moving to a new home, or in some cases, after a death, when a home needs emptying.
But there’s another side to the Auckland-based business, which was founded in 2005, but now has 40 staff and does several hundred junk runs a week.
That’s Junk2Good.
Because while the business charges to take away things like unwanted furniture, appliances, and household items like kitchenware, it doesn’t sell them.
Instead, every “Donation Day” Thursday at its Avondale premises, charities like Monte Cecilia Housing Trust, Lifewise and Visionwest come to choose the items they want for families, and people, who need them, but can’t afford them.
Its first ever impact report covering just one year of operations showed it rehomed more than 26,000 items, diverting 135 tonnes from landfill, and supporting numerous people in need through 23 charity partners.
Business owners Dave and Margot Lewis spoke with The Post about their operation.
What is the gap in the market your business' product or service fills?
Dave: My belief is that people have a problem and we solve that.
We do a lot of commercial work. Recently, a company was downsizing or moving to another office. They had a lot of desks and furniture. They needed to be removed, but they don't want to move it to their next building because they've got new stuff. They also don't want it to go to the landfill.
So we come and quote, and we bring it back to our depot, and we give it to charity.
Who comes on your Donation Days?
Dave: We call them guests. The charities bring people. They're our guests.
There's a guy called Rob from Lifewise. I'll be saying, ‘What are these people here for today?’ He says, ‘Oh, they're moving into their flat in Queen Street.“ Often it's a flat in the city, an apartment for the first time, and they have nothing. They might have been off the streets.
We load up their Lifewise van with the beds and couches. They might get some paintings that we've got from a deceased estate. And you see them drive out and, that's what it's about, right? It's just magic.
After the Auckland floods, we had a lady. She said all her kids are sleeping on the floor, and this was two years later. They hadn't recovered. They'd lost everything.
What are your ambitions for the business?
Dave: It's about evolution. We're not doing the same as we was 20 years ago. I believe the need is increasing for our services. You know, Auckland's growing. There there's massive opportunity, but it's also, how can we serve the customer better by doing right in the community.
Business has to be a win for the shareholders. It has to be a win for our people that work with us. It has to be a win for the customer, and for our communities.
If we can make that happen, magic happens.
Margot: We often think what other services could we add on? Could we expand throughout other parts of New Zealand, but we still think there's opportunity in Auckland to go broader and deeper into the market. It's probably about expanding within Auckland.
Does NZ do enough to ensure green businesses develop and thrive?
Margot: We've had a couple of small grants from Auckland Council. We bought some scales which helped us to weigh what we recycle and donate. That's been useful because then we can measure if we're improving.