The Big issue fact file

• Started in 1991
• Gordon Roddick and John Bird are the founders
• Sold only on the streets
• Put together by professional journalists
• An attempt to battle poverty and homelessness
• Helps them make a living
• They were publishing pioneers
• Works the same way they did in 1991
• Vendors buy it for half the cover price and then sell it for double, making a profit
• “a hand up not a handout” is its motto
• Lots of celebrities like George Michael are big fans of the big issue
• Launched in lots of other countries including Australia, Japan, Korea, South Africa, Kenya,
France, Nambia, Zambia, Malawi, Ireland, USA, and the UK
• Empowers the homeless
• Builds a community
• Sold over 200,000,000 copies in the UK alone
• The online shops provide finance for social businesses to help dismantle poverty
• John Bird (founder) in the house of lords