To think that 35 quid for a coat in a charity shop that has no label is ridiculous?

[comfortablyum]

Er, the title says it all. . Wandered into charity shop (not fair to say what the place is in aid of or where it is), for a look about. Picked a nice coat. The price tag said 'vintage' and was priced at 35 quid.
Now two things:
1, Since when has stuff in a charity shop been 35 quid ?

2, How the giddens can they justify this without the item even having a label ?

I mean it didn't say 'Dior' or anything. Grr... Afraid I walked out in a bit of flounce. Bad of me I know.

I LOVE my local charity shop, she knows I don't have loads of money so alters prices for me. This week I got new diesel trainers for £1.50 and a DKNY skirt for one of dds at £1. There is a singer sewing machine I want and its "for free" but I do not drive and cannot carry the bugger!

Rusty I'd argue that they do have a duty, actually.

It makes no sense to me that a charity like Oxfam charges so much money for stuff.

as an ex manager of charity shops pricing can often go wrong. Not all people recognise all brands, and I have had to rescue Voi jeans etc before being sold for £2.99 with tags still on. In the same way, some people think that things that they like and they would buy would be priced higher, even if not branded etc... trying not to be stereotypical but known in trade as twinset and pearls brigade

Why dont you go buy the coat, put it on ebay and see what you get, just out of interest?

Going back to what I said earlier about the popularity of vintage....heres a random example of the sorts of prices coats go for from a vintage website/shop - a lot of the descriptions don't mention a label or brand but it doesn't necessarily mean they are worth less by the make being unknown.

I find a lot of charity shops taking the p*ss with pricing recently. Oxfam especially. I've seen Primark stuff for more than they'd cost new, and high street cashmere - clearly worn and pilled - for more than they'd be in the sales. Things of dubious origin are regularly more than supermarket clothing. Ridiculous. I don't think the staff really have much idea of what brands are which (even high street ones) and how much they cost new.

greenwichgroove, that is a sacking offence, and here is my first If I donated those items I would expect them to get top whack for my chosen charity, not to help you out regardless if you don't have much money. If anyone else saw her do that and reported her she would lose her job. Its like being friends wi the girl in debenhams and her giving you half price...its not her stuff to give away/reduce for a friend.

"If they made the clothing very cheap, you'd get mass invasions of people who then resold stuff on ebay or the markets"

so what? so long as the charity shops are selling and making a profit, isn't it better to be really busy and sell loads off cheaply (whether it goes on ebay or not- so what?) than be empty and have the odd browser walk out empty handed.

One near me recently went out of buisness - its prices were stupid. It had a prime location but people just walked in and out!
The charity they were supporting would have been much better off if they'ld sold low, to possibly ebayers or carbooters etc, and stayed open because they were actually selling!

• I buy a lot from charity shops but never once from that one even though it was one of my nearest

you are right reluctant townie, because most charity shop volunteers are pensioners and do not recognise brands. But also charity shops are target driven, and with so many people ebaying stuff managers find it very hard to meet their targets. Maybe you could give one hour a week to your local Oxfam to help them with pricing?

"If they made the clothing very cheap, you'd get mass invasions of people who then resold stuff on ebay or the markets"
and invasions of customers is a good thing if you run a shop right??

omfg I don't think one hour a week volunteers get to do the pricing TBH!
I volunteered full time at one for a while and didn't get to do pricing or sorting! that was left to the permanent biddies.

Its very difficult to find the right balance, some weeks donations are so poor that the shop looks sparse and terrible, other times you get good stuff, but managers are put in a position, do you hold some good stuff back so you can make your target in a week where all you get through the door is shit, or do you put it all out and have a really good week then head office puts your targets up and you dont get good stuff for ages. Its tougher than normal retail outlets.

lacking, that is another problem, the biddies want to run the place. but if there is a strong manager she/he will recognise skills. Basically what could be done is let the twinsets&pearls do their thing in stock room and have management, or someone who recognises good brands check before stuff goes out. That was the policy at one of the shops I managed, but it is difficult to get folk to work for free and they all want to do the same thing, no-one wants to stand and steam!!

I once had a volunteer who always wanted to count the money on the counter, and countless times i had to tell her no. one day she had left all the money on the counter and was distracted by customer. I lifted all the large notes and fucked off for my lunch, let her sweat for half an hour. she didnt do it again!!

Yellowraincoat - you might think they have a moral duty, but a charity's trustees have a legal duty to ensure that charitable funds and assets are used reasonably and properly, and "only in furtherance of the charity?s objects"

Really, Rusty, I understand what you're saying. But personally the idea of running charity as big business leaves me cold. I don't think it works. I think it often does more harm than good.

If I donated those items I would expect them to get top whack for my chosen charity, not to help you out regardless if you don't have much money.

Got to say, I'm a bit confused by that attitude. It's a bit like saying "I want to help THIS type of needy person/place/animal, but not THIS other type of needy person/place/animal." Surely the vulnerable is the vulnerable - stuff gets recycled, the charity gets money for their needy person, the shopper (usually a needy person too) gets something they couldn't afford top whack for. And so the world goes round.

Or that's my thinking at least. I shop for my DD in charity shops as I struggle to afford brand new stuff for her.

And I didn't say anything about a "moral" duty.

omfgkillmenow Great tactic, I did that with ds2's expensive scooter recently, snuck up and 'nicked it'. He came home bawling Still he watches it like a hawk now.

No, I know you didn't specify a moral duty, but I couldn't see what other kind of duty you might have meant?

Our local one was great. Then they had a refit and now l the items are an absolute piss take. A small plastic car for £1.50 when cars were 25p each before. Items from tesco up the road, going for more than Tesco sell it thenselves.

I asked them, when I buy stuff or donate, what percentage of the money goes to the charity and how much towards to refit.
I just get silence or "I dont know"

I dont donate or buy things their now. And the over price toys sit in the window from weeks on end now when before the display would change daily if not more.

"the shopper (usually a needy person too) gets something they couldn't afford top whack for. And so the world goes round.

Or that's my thinking at least. I shop for my DD in charity shops as I struggle to afford brand new stuff for her"

problem is, recently I've been standing there with an item saying to myself "can I affort to pay MORE for this because it is for charity and recycled, or do I go down the road and buy if for less new?" happened only yesterday, I was weighing up the moral benefit of buying recycled for my new baby Vs if I can actually afford to be that altruistic, decided I COULDN'T afford to NOT buy new in that case - mad innit?

*there

It's hard to say if you're being unreasonable without seeing the coat and what quality it is. I've bought Louis Vuitton clothing before now for £20, label removed. The people in the shop didn't recognise it but the buttons and quality gave it away. (That was my find of the century.)

Rusty it's more like a community/social duty. Kind of beside the point, I guess, but the word "moral" is pretty meaningless to me.

nini I am not saying top whack as in expensive, I meant top whack in what the charity could reasonable expect people to afford. To reduce new Diesel trainers to £1.50 for a friend when an equally needy person would have paid say a fiver and the charity lost £3.50... some people "volunteer in charity shops" just to get first dibs on stuff that comes in, and if it doesnt fit them they hold it by for a friend charging half or less of what the charity could have reasonably sold it for....