Thinking Vinted will see Charity Shops out of business?

Not for me, Vinted - I like to see and feel the fabric of clothes before I buy them, and try them on if needed - and I don't want the hassle of postal returns if it isn't as described.

Really interested to know which regions widely use the term “chazza”! Not one I have heard before (I’m Scottish, but live in London).

As to the question, for me it’s a pretty simple thought process:

1. I could make some money selling something on Vinted
2. Giving an item to charity is the same as giving that money to charity

so my decision as to what to do with something depends on how charitable I am feeling and how much I need the money. No different to my thought process when someone rattles a tin.

Before it was easy to make money from unwanted clothes it was a no-brainer to give them to charity.

As a buyer I don’t buy a lot of clothes for myself anyway, and prefer new. For the kids Vinted is way too much of a faff but I am a heavy user of the school’s secondhand uniform store. Kids’ clothes in our local charity shops are terrible quality.

I buy lots of books, toys and homewares from charity shops, as well as supplies to make fancy dress and costumes.

I've been a big fan of charity shops over decades. Couldnt pass the door of one without a quick dip in, and used to love a good mooch. I've had some amazing finds - antiques, homeware and clothes. Now I find my interest waning and can walk past a whole row of charity shops without a second glance. I know what to expect. The quality of the clothes has really declined, and the prices!! If people can buy new for similar prices, why would anyone buy used?

I think both have their place. I buy a lot in both, but never sell in Vinted. I can’t be arsed with the hassle so I donate. I love hearing how much my donations have raised.

Charity shops are just that, they exist to benefit a particular charity. They’re mostly run by volunteers, very few people get paid.

Their sole purpose is to raise funds for their purposes, whether that’s Cancer Research, the British Heart Foundation, the local Hospice or whatever. They aren’t providing a service for people who want cheap stuff.

Nowadays charities are all about regular revenue through direct payments. If the shops stop working for them as a fundraiser, they’ll close them.

It’s a variety of problems.

The first one being “chazza” - wth?! I shall file it along with “picky bits” as terms which define the fall of civilisation.

Anyway, it’s the internet. Charity shops started price-matching with eBay, which was stupid. Of course they don’t want to price a valuable item at 50p, but they are local and eBay has a worldwide customer base. And thinking that a bobbly 2004 dress from Boden is worth £15 just because it’s Boden.

Bric-a-brac: now there are sites like Vintage Cash Cow - you don’t get a fortune but I made £50 from old spoons and suchlike.

But mostly it’s the standard of goods for the past 25 or so years, and especially recently Primark, Temu, Schein etc. Those things are tuppence ha’penny in the first place and of dubious quality. These are donated to charity shops and no one wants them - especially if exhorbitantly priced!

A lot of volunteers sadly don’t know the difference in quality/RRP between brands. I spend a lot of time in my shifts at the charity shop pointing out to the manager that they could sell specific items for more than they have been marked up for!

That's a fair point. I wish there were any Sea salt items in the charity shops near me!

I was about to write pretty much this. I’ve really noticed a reduction in good quality brands coming into the shop where I volunteer, which is in quite a well to do area where Boden, Reiss, John Lewis, Seasalt etc type brands used to come in regularly.

Chazza? What on earth.

Anyway charity shops already sell stuff online they have their own stores on eBay etc they check donations when they are given in and then sell them on there if they’re pricey.

I find clothing in charity shops is quite expensive and especially when you see a primary item for probably more than it was new! I go there for last minute stuff like school dress up costumes

Depends on the brand, surely? £15 for a vg condition Seasalt dress (retail at around £70 new) is fine imo.

Charity shops exist to raise money for charity. Costs have escalated because of overheads like utilities and national insurance for the staff who are paid (most are volunteers, obvs). The cost of disposal of clothes that aren't fit for purpose is high, too.

The issue for me is largely quality in charity shops - bobbling jumpers from Primark that have seen better days. Sone of that may be down to Vinted... but the bigger issue that drove me to vinted to sell was that charity shops aren't taking new donations

Entitled! You are complaining charity shops now ask too much money for stuff you were obviously selling on for a profit. Nice.

I think the main problem with charity shops, at least London is that the items are priced too high. Zaran items that were likely bought for 30-40 will be on sale for for 15-20. Which is ridiculous for a pre-owned item. Even seen second hand primark for a tenner and a skirt I bought brand new in the m&s sale cost more second hand with damage from a charity shop.

Vinted has a lot more selection, you can specify what your are looking for and can likely find it for a better price than a charity shop.

I think there's massive overlap with Vinted/Charity/Ebay. Interestingly when eBay was the only one, it didn't seem to clash with charity shops. eBay then went down in quality, and I think Vinted is now going the same way. Some of the shit being sold for a couple of pounds is just ridiculous.

DD's recent purchases are going to charity as they turned out not as expected. I send all my stuff to the local hospice charity, keep it local. I have brand new stuff not selling in Vinted, so I can't be arsed to keep it around.

My friend recently got made redundant from a paid role in a charity shop (she was the manager). The charity had decided to close all their dozen or so charity shops because the utilities etc required to keep the premises open were crippling them. They now use a different funding model.

There’s space for both - I love charity shops for a browse and to not have to wait or pay postage and I love Vinted to look for specific things or buy bundles of kids clothes. I have sold on Vinted but cba at the moment so donate to charity.

I love a trawl round the charity shops although do agree that some are pricing their clothes too high. At my local ones, they seem to put very similar prices on George at Asda etc & designer labels. Also love Vinted as I have sold a lot of stuff in a day that’s been stuck on FB Marketplace for months.

No. I don't buy clothes on line as it's impossible to tell if they fit, a New Look 10 is very different to a Next size 10. At least in a charity shop I can hold the item against me and get a feel for it.

I've sold a handful of things on Vinted for £1 but it's easier to just drop things at the charity shop.

I've bought far too much from Vinted. I tend to shop for brands which I already know I like, are good quality and I know my size in. Often it's to find a replacement for something I already have which has worn beyond repair. I never find those things in charity shops and it's not for lack of trying.

I find shopping in person overstimulating and overwhelming and I'm overweight so it's rare I can walk into any shop and find things that fit nicely. This is so much worse in charity shops where they cram everything onto the rails and there's rarely anything of my size and, even if there are, they're cheap fabrics or not my style. This has been my experience long before Vinted existed.

If I could find what I was looking for more easily in charity shops, I would absolutely shop there more but, until then, you'll find me on Vinted and eBay.

I sell as a business on Ebay (USA) and a couple of other international sites. I avoid Vinted because the prices realised are just too low for the effort you have to put in listing them. Vinted is fpr amateurs clearing out their wardrobe. Nothing wrong with that but the buyers are far too entitled and its too easy to return stuff.

If charitry shops are failing its because they are far too expensive and they will not bargain. Some of the stuff they sell is almost retail price. I used to be able to tour the charity shops in my immediate area and pick up jewellery and accessories to sell in my vintage shops. Now they are asking too much for modern tat. Its much better value to buy a mixed bumdle at auction and split it up into the individual items.

Where I live the charity shops are full of Primark or similar at prices not much less than new and in poor condition. People will leave stuff outside when they are closed. Volunteers seem to look down on customers.
The ones where my son lives are much better (north of Watford). The volunteers take an interest in making things look good and smile.

I love a charity shop browse! However, what I don't love is the boutique pricing. I'm not saying I want a dress for as little as £4 but also £12-15 for one is too much for second hand IMO.

Well most people I know would either use it or know it.

Where are people using that word because clearly many of us have never heard of it.