You have to sneak up on charity shops

[TheOtherBennetSister]

If they see you coming you never find what you want. Last week I went charity shopping with my eldest - on a mission! Bought 1 anime t-shirt for 10yo dd that it turns out was the wrong show :(

Today I was NOT shopping for myself. I was looking for shorts for teen ds. Ended up coming home with a gorgeous M&S dress, a denim jacket (tags still on), a brand new pair of sneakers, some lounging pants, a Uniqlo top, a navy silk shirt, and an adorable designer pair of cotton dungarees for the 10yo. You know what I didn't get? Shorts for DS.

Next time I need clothes for myself I think I'll go shopping for Frank Sinatra CDs and a dining table.

Same principle as tkmax and Argos . Never let them know what you are looking for / need to be in stock 😂

I live in a, ahem, up and coming area of a generally well off city and my local charity shops are the best!
I’ve had Whistles, Seasalt, Toast, Ghost, a wool French Connection coat and a wool and cashmere Hobbes coat for next to nothing. Love a rake in the charity shops!
Once I found a Halston Heritage dress that was retailing for £400 online for £20 but it didn’t fit my ethics made me flag it to the assistant so they get more for it

I lived in North Leeds once and we used to get the bus to Harrogate for the fancy charity shops!

100%
Never let them think you are looking for anything in particular. You have to swan in for a browse only.

The good stuff only appears when you’re skint and trying to save money.

Never leave the shop because you are undecided about an item. It will have been sold by the time you go back- even if it's only been an hour since your first visit.

I've never gone to a charity shop looking for out of season items for a particular age range to can't relate to your initial odyssey but I agree that you take what you find there.

Where's your AIBU? They are 'shops' full of stuff that would otherwise go in landfill they aren't there to fulfil your specific out of season needs.

This thread isn't in AIBU, it's in Chat.

So it is!

Well done, op, on your gritty real life observations on charity shops. I belly laughed.

What odd replies from @canyoutellemehowtoget

OP I agree with this but for me it applies to all sorts of shopping bar food! 9/10 if I go looking for something I’ll never find it but if I go for a browse I’ll see plenty of things I could buy.

This is just a light-hearted thread, what's with the sniping?

So true! In any shop, not just charity shops. Also, you only see things you like when you can't afford to buy them. Go out with money to spend and a list of needed items and there will be nothing suitable at all 🤷‍♀️

To be honest I’ve found the exact opposite. Shops never have what I want but I nearly always find what I need in my charity shops.
I do live in a particularly well off town which has loads of charity shops at every “level” of reselling other peoples donations. Between them I have a wardrobe of cashmere, quirky one offs and decent footwear. I always think they should do a TV series about charity shop fashion in some form or another.

I am going for a casual browse tomorrow. I am NOT going to look directly at the amazing box full of toddler car tracks that I want for my little grandson incase it KNOWS and disappears

That's the way @StillMedusa . You're hoping to find a nice warm winter coat, right?

I don't think you know what gritty means.