Hi,
I have some exciting news for you all.
Last week’s newsletter was all about why there have been many changes in Oikos, how taking hands with Bobshop has been a solution for the steps that we needed to take for closing the Oikos online ecommerce store, leaving the Oikos Family Ministries purely as a help and support website.
When we closed the Oikos online store, we needed to find a way to make the books available for online purchasing here in South Africa and beyond our borders - Bobshop. Well, those of you who have walked this road with us will know that things changed in Bobshop - what they offered 6 months ago in comparison to what they offer now, resulted in us not being as aligned as we were when starting out with Bobshop. We needed to find a better solution.
I also mentioned in last week’s newsletter that we don’t stop seeking ways to keep service and support available as far as we are able. So, in that regard I have some very good news for you: Good Neighbours Bookshop, with online ecommerce book distribution, have started to stock some of the Oikos books. This is fantastic for many reasons.
Firstly, Kathy Le Cordeur is a long time Oikos parent, raising her 4 children using the Oikos resources and she was even involved in helping with the special conversion of Math U See to the South Africa version. So, safe to say she is very familiar with Oikos and the Oikos resources. Secondly, at present Kathy is chief operator at Good Neighbours Bookshop, so she is on board with all the practical workings of the shop. Which is totally wonderful because Kathy is what I would call a passionately practical person. Thirdly, Good Neighbours aligns very well with Oikos as they are first and foremost a Christian book shop, registered as a PBO (Public Benefit Organisation) for more than 35 years. Good Neighbours operates as a non-profit organisation. When Oikos tried to register as a PBO/NPO there was a lot more red tape to get through than when Good Neighbours registered. In the end Oikos did not become a registered PBO/NPO, even though we tried, but now we can take hands with Good Neighbours as a PBO registered concern.
How does this affect you?
Firstly, we are going one step at a time, books currently sold on Bobshop, will also be available for purchase from Good Neighbour’s, either at their brick and mortar stores based in Gauteng but also online. The Oikos books will be available for you to make online purchases as usual (some categories, eg Picture Smart Bible and Dr Jay Wile Science books are there already).
Secondly, the explainer videos and support videos for the books, will be linked on the Good Neighbours site. As mentioned last week, this support was removed from Bobshop but now we can offer it again through Good Neighbours.
Thirdly, when you need help with ordering, Kathy, as previously mentioned knows Oikos very well, is on the other side of an email or phone line to give assistance. The Oikos web site remains your main support for general home education information, product information and parental support.
Fourthly, if you are wanting to order Oikos resources from beyond South African borders, Good Neighbours will try to assist as much a spossible.
Is this not all just wonderful?
I know and understand that this will result in yet more changes, so we hope to make it an easy transition. We also know that as much as we aim to achieve this objective we will encounter some bumps along the way - such is how things are. We want you to know that if you are finding some things difficult, we would like you to tell us about them so we can attempt to remove the bumps and make the road smooth.
I must say, I am not entirely surprised by the fact that we need to move on from BobShop because it was an immediate solution, not a longer term solution. Now that we can take hands with Good Neighbours, which aligns so well with Oikos, I am hoping that this next change and transition will be a ‘good for all’, ongoing, long term. better experience.
Please visit the Oikos Family Ministries website to keep up to date with changes happening, as and when they do, and thank you for subscribing to this newsletter. Please tell others so we can be as efficient and as effective as possible in continuing to bring help and support to you in your learning lifestyle at home.
Thank you for listening, or reading. Until next week, have a happy, fun learning time together.
Here is Good Neighbours Bookshop
Picture Smart Bible books and Dr Jay Wile Science books are available on Good Neighbours now, more categories will be added in the weeks to come.
And here is Oikos Family Ministries