To think charity shops should be cheaper?

[Chocolatelover45]

The prices in my local charity shops are ridiculous (small northern town) .
E.g.
£2.50 for a rattle
£1 for a scuffed pint glass
£3.99 for a children's t shirt (George)
£1.50 for dog eared children's paperbacks
£4 for hardback puzzle book with half the puzzles already completed
£2.49 for 4 small plain Christmas baubles

Why do they charge so much? Surely they'd sell a lot more if it was cheaper? Or is there a good reason?

Yes, and they threat you like shit and allow their volunteers to be sexually hartases by other volunteers, or at least that is my experience of oxfam as a volunteer. You are just a slave and don’t start me about how patronising they are to the people they are “helping”

I agree, they charge a fortune for old rope. You would think it would be more important to make money for their causes than hoard stock. But then again how will the higher up staff get their extravagant bonuses if they didn't charge an arm and a leg.

I agree op, so much stuff must end up in landfill, surely they would shift alot more if they sold the goods at cheaper prices?

They don’t go to landfill but are bagged up and sold on to raf merchants (or whatever they are called £

What is the Mary Portas effect?

I haven't read the full thread but I think you're right op. A charity shop near me cant take any more donations as they dont have the storage space yet the stuff they are selling is really overpriced. They'd make much more for the charity if they started shifting it

You would think it would be more important to make money for their causes than hoard stock. But then again how will the higher up staff get their extravagant bonuses if they didn't charge an arm and a leg.

You're contradicting yourself. If 'higher up staff' get bonuses (and they never did in any charity I was involved with), it would be because they were successful at 'making money'. So, if they were meeting their fundraising targets by 'charging an arm and a leg', then they must be making money.

Unless you think there is some weird conspiracy where senior charity staff are being paid extra not to raise money?

To repeat...

By law, in England and Wales, charities are required to state their objectives.

‘Charity trustees must use their charity's funds and assets only in furtherance of the charity's purposes.'

Page 5:
www.assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/677252/Chapter2new.pdf

Charity shops exist to raise money for the charity. If the charity's purpose is to help those in poverty, or support the local population more generally, then they could sell second hand clothes etc cheaply. If it is any other purpose, then legally they must maximise the income and use the money for the specified purpose.

As per @PineappleDanish
‘Managers in the chain charity shops like ours are drowning in management information - total sales, sales by department, sales versus last year, against everyone else in the chain, average price per sale, sales per square foot... It's very easy to spot trends. Managers and the district managers are CONSTANTLY reviewing figures and tweaking prices to get the most money possible. Because the shop is there to raise as much as it can for charity, not to provide cheap stuff.’

Of course, not every charity shop is well run. But it is amazing how many people believe that either:
a) Charity shops should sell clothes cheaply, just because they are charity shops - although that would be against the law
b) Charity shops would definitely make more money by selling things more cheaply – even when the people running the shop are retail professionals using detailed information to maximise income

Everyone's an expert on charity shops. Everyone knows someone's friend's mum who's stealing stock, so therefore ALL volunteers are shifty. Managers are totally clueless. Volunteers are positively encouraged to stick a tenner on every bobbled t-shirt from H&M and leave it on the shelves for 9 months. No charity shops are making any money. The shops are always empty. They chuck everything in landfill.

But the truth is that although there are some rubbish charity shop managers in the same way that there are rubbish teachers, police officers and Asda managers. But a poorly-performing shop isn't going to stagger on unnoticed.

Wonder if all the experts on charity shops have ever actually helped out?

Pineapple , I’ve given up commenting on this thread, so many ‘experts’ around . I think we both know that Oxfam is actually one of the most successful charity shop chains and is used as a model for many other charity retailers. Stats from Charity Shop Association.

Happy Christmas

Those saying eBay is part of the problem, maybe, but it's a vicious cycle. I used to buy almost all my clothing from charity shops, partly to support the charity, partly to reduce clothes in landfill, partly to avoid directly supporting retailers with unethical/exploitative manufacturing processes, and partly to get a bargain. Now I buy almost exclusively from eBay because the charity shops don't represent good value anymore.
A couple weeks ago one of my local shops had a quite tatty moses basket and stand in for £40, so I went on eBay and picked one up in much better condition, for a fiver. Even after I'd bought a new mattress, new sheets, and a second-hand (eBay again) swaddle blanket, I still had plenty of change from £40!!
Same with maternity clothes. £5 per item in a charity shop, or a bundle of 4 or 5 items for £10 on eBay 🤷🏼‍♀️

I guess I am a bit of an expert having volunteered in 3 and my partner in 1. They vary immensely. Some do a great job and help young people who want to just get out of the house or are doing the Duke of Edinburgh award for example.
They also provide structure and friendship for people who may be isolated.

I know what you mean Ragwort. I've had someone say to me that they have clothes they want to donate, but it must go to a deserving home - my suggestion of going via the usual channels of either charity shop or clothes bank did not go down well.

Of course, not every charity shop is well run. But it is amazing how many people believe that either:
a)Charity shops should sell clothes cheaply, just because they are charity shops - although that would be against the law
But that's not why they should sell cheaper or do uniform pricing.

b)Charity shops would definitely make more money by selling things more cheaply – even when the people running the shop are retail professionals using detailed information to maximise income.
Yet alternative models exist and are successful. Why is that?

Its generally down to the people who volunteer there...

We have ALOT of charity shops near us, some are expensive, some are standard but one in particular is so cheap, its crazy