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Scottish Charity Register No. SC043760

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Facebook group boosts Big Issue vendor\'s sales

September 25 2009
The Croydon Big Issue Man Appreciation Club now has more than 900 members Big Issue seller Michael Murphy has seen his sales rocket by around 400 per cent after a customer set up a Facebook group dedicated to him. Mr Murphy, 35, said: "I was selling as few as seven or eight a day. I'm doing at least 25-30 a day now." The 'Croydon Big Issue Man Appreciation Club' founded by customer Matthew Melody, 24, now has more than 900 members. Mr Melody said he was happy to have helped boost sales. Members of the public and vendors have set up a number of Facebook groups devoted to the Big Issue, such as the 'Epsom happy Big Issue guy appreciation group' (which has more than 1,200 members), 'The Singing Watford Big Issue Man' and 'Covent Garden Big Issue Man'. However, a number of 'hate' groups have also been created, including 'Big Issue Man Hatred Group', 'Does it look like I want a f*cking big issue?!' and 'Why do all Manchester Big Issue sellers wear £120 Nike Air Max trainers?' A spokesperson for The Big Issue told The Pavement: "We neither encourage nor discourage the setting up of Facebook pages for vendors. It's fantastic for the vendor involved and we're in favour of anything that benefits vendors in magazine sales and feeling part of the wider community." However, the spokesperson added the negative sentiments were "unfortunate and, generally speaking, misguided" but also inevitable. "The Big Issue seems to provoke both positive and negative responses, even after 17 years, but we welcome debate," she said.
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