To feel a bit peeved that the charity shop

[Lightshines]

creamed off the best stuff before the shop customers got a look-in?

I was browsing yesterday and overheard two staff members sorting out a box of donated goods. Lady 1 said 'oooh I will have that for the tombola at ......' And Lady 2 said 'this DS will be ok to put on EBay' and put the items aside.

I know when people give goods the aim is to raise money, which I guess still happens. But I felt a bit cheated somehow. AIBU?

The problem being, if there's naff all but tat left in the shop, why bother visiting. If you think you might find a gem (which is why I visit TKMaxx, for instance) you will go to the shops and perhaps buy other more standard stuff.

I love secondhand stuff but I don't bother going to charity shops anymore, there's no thrill in the search and I think the stuff is overpriced. I think what they are doing is unreasonable.

stock that is identified as having a higher retail value than normal shop prices goes to a different location

Do you think that's good Goblinchild?

IMO that practice destroys retail outlets who don't enjoy the massive benefits that charity shops enjoy, such as peppercorn rents and freedom from paying for stock or staff.

I have seen second-hand booksellers go out of business when an Oxfam bookshop opens up in the neighbourhood.

Not only is it unfair for a behemoth to trample on pygmies, it is deeply offensive when they and their supporters justify driving people out of business and destroying paid jobs citing sainthood.

It also puts up prices and reduces choice for consumers.

As a connoisseur of second-hand books, I can tell you that my favourite shop about a 20-minute bus ride away went to the wall about 18 months after an Oxfam bookshop opened nearby.

Now there are a number of charity shops there competing to sell WH Smith 3 for 2 shit with sand in the pages. I guess they don't do that much much trade. But seeing as they hardly have to pay anything, it doesn't matter much to them. But it matters to me.

And it's in what I you and I would describe as a very rich area indeed.

I used to volunteer in a charity shop and everything but handbags, shoes & books were priced by the manager. We had a manual to follow for pricing so we couldn't put whatever price we wanted. Our charity shop was run like any other retail business.

Our charity shop was run like any other retail business

No, they're not

I don't think letting the volunteers get first dibs is a good long-term strategy for a charity shop. If all the best stuff is gone before it is even on the shop floor then who on earth would bother going in there for all the tat that's left over? Not me.

I did a corporate volunteer thing with work in a naice charity shop in a fancy area. The lady told us that they often get valuable things in- bits of jewellery, LPs, early edition books etc that if they left them in the shop people wouldn't realise their value and try to buy it cheap it or complain. So they put in eBay, sell online themselves, send elsewhere to maximise profit. This shop itself was known for having designer labels, fancy gowns, retro furniture so they kept that stuff.

We have a new Salvation Army shop opened in Shanklin, and to be fair its brilliant, they got their clothes from a central warehouse on the mainland for the opening and they have some really nice stuff, I got my DH a couple of pairs of fatface chinos for £4.99 a pair and some next short sleeve shirts for £3.99 each, I got a beautiful per una dress for £5.99 and some per una tops £3.99 each.

All of these were beautifully steamed and smelt fresh

The downside is they don't have much bric a brac, books or toys as they are having to wait until they get these donated and they don't sell any dvds above age 15 and they don't open on Sunday

They have a loyalty card that gets you £5.00 off every time you fill it and also have a bag that each time you fill it up with donations you get £2.00 off your next purchase.

Its really clean and sweet smelling as well.

its much better than the bridal/frock xchange shop that was there before and it had also meant that the expensive BHF shop next door has started lowering their prices to compete

My son and DIL2B used to work in a charity shop (its where they met) and one of DS's jobs was pricing up items that might be worth more than they can charge in the shop. They would ebay them or send them to auction or send designer clothes to the specialist high end shops that the chain has in order to raise more money. It all went back to the charity.

Thats why you cant get a designer vintage bargain in charity shops anymore, they are wise to it.

I still see quite a bit of cashmere in the charity shops in edinburgh - admittedly it's high street but getting it for !
£4-10 is a lot better than getting it for 60-70.

Finney : It's hardly everything - if that's what you've experienced, the charity shops you're familiar with must have some very rich and discerning volunteers if they're able to purchase all of the decent stock immediately on sight, leaving only crap behind... Where I worked, it was only the odd item, and not necessarily anything I would've expected to sell quickly or easily to a member of public. Also, selling to volunteers often meant the charity got more for the item: as the shop was in an extremely low income area, customers would rarely be prepared to pay over £5 for anything, regardless of it's true worth, and things would often have to be discounted or moved to another shop in order to sell them at all. My volunteers, on the other hand, recognised that they were getting a bargain, but also wanted to help the charity and so were happy to pay a slightly higher price.