I swear we have this thread every two weeks.
I have volunteered in charity shops for a decade and yes they have got more expensive over that time. Show me something which is the same price as it was in 2015.
The pile it high sell it cheap model may work for some shops but there are two key reasons why it would not work in either of the large chain shops where i volunteered.
- Volunteer staff. In order to keep constantly putting stuff out you need: someone on the till, someone stocking the shelves, someone sorting stock and pricing, someone steaming it. 4 people. The last place I volunteered could not open on certain days because they could not hit the minimum of 2 people per shift.
- We owe it to people who donate good stuff to us to get a decent price for it. Selling a BNWT M&S lambswool jumper for £1 or a expensive designer party dress for £5 is not doing that. People will not spend MORE if prices are cheaper - you go in looking for a jumper with a mental budget of a tenner and find one for £2 what do you do? Congratulate yourself on a bargain and walk out to spend the £8 elsewhere, or remember you'd set aside a tenner so buy extra things you don't want? Exactly.
Charity shops are deluged with stock, most of it is not good quality. The bottom has fallen out of the rag/waste textile market as it has been flooded with so much poor quality shite from China. People might think they are doing us a favour by bringing things "for recycling" but when you're getting £1 per black bag it's not exactly a great money spinner. Nobody wants second hand Primark, Boohoo, Pretty Little Thing, ASOS or Shein unless it is still brand new with tags and even then, it's worth hardly anything unless it's something like boots or a winter coat.
Mistakes get made, especially when you have perhaps one paid member of staff who is not there every hour the shop is open. Pricing on clothes is easier than bric a brac and google lens does make it easier to work out whether you're looking at a rare piece of Japanese ceramic or a sixth form project. But we are only human, and do our best. We also get loads of management data from the till showing exactly how many women's dresses, men's jumpers, toys etc have sold the previous week/month/year so can give more space to what's selling, and reduce what's not.
Some people are choosing to sell on Vinted and fair play to them. I sell and buy on there too. But others can't be arsed or want to support charity and there is still loads of space for charity shops on the market.
And finally - the reason you can't find anything on Vinted is because there is TOO MUCH STUFF. We have enough clothes on this planet to clothe the next six generations. Seriously. It's OBSCENE. Don't be buying something thinking you'll wear it a couple of times then whack it on vinted. That's not OK.