The Bizarre is a well known establishment here in Coromandel and has grown over the years to become what it is today, a much loved icon of our small town.

The history of The Bizarre goes back 40 + years, and there are some volunteers from that time still working at the Bizarre in whatever capacity they can still manage. It began in 1965 to raise funds for the Anglican Church Hall, where the vicar at the time, Phillip Cherrington held his youth club meetings. Volunteers manned the shop then, much as it is run today. Within 6 years the shop having raised enough funds to pay for the hall had become such an essential part of Coromandel, that it was decided to carry on with it and because of the strange objects that were often up sale, it was given the name “The Bizarre”, and we still have bizarre items for sale today. The Coromandel Senior Settlement Trust was established in 1986 for the purpose of creating accommodation for senior citizens. They established Elizabeth Park village which is now an entity of its own. In 1989 the trust brought the property that housed the Bizarre as a means to protect this much loved Coromandel treasure. A new building was built and we now have a wonderful shop and so the bizarre lives on as a community charity shop for all who love a bargain and who have goods that they no longer need. We have now taken another milestone step, as from the 11th May 2009 it was been possible to open the shop everyday from 9am to 5pm. The money that is made goes back to our community in the way of grants that can be applied for at the website www.coroseniortrust.org.nz and of course the money saved by buying second-hand items.