Aibu to make money from a charity shop purchase?

[Partnerprobs]

Recently went to a charity shop and found a couple of items for sale that I liked and were in very good condition. A handbag and a book. Both were in a locked cabinet. I bought them for £25 in total and have sold them on eBay for £75 and £34 pounds, so I’ve made about £84 (less eBay fees which I haven’t seen yet)

My best friend was really shocked and said it’s like stealing and I should donate the money to the charity - this has surprised and unnerved me as I thought it was fine (as they were in the cabinet so had been picked as higher end items, and also they were more expensive than normal items)

I thought it was a lucky break and was looking forward to treating myself.

Aibu?

That's a reach. Op could easily have bought them because she liked them, and then looked them up and discovered they were worth something, at which point she realised she liked the cash more than the item. Which is completely fine.

I buy a lot of items from charity shops because I like them. I have literally never looked up how much I could get for them on ebay. Why would you do this if you'd bought an item you planned to use? I agree the OP is being disingenuous.

I can see both sides. Why not donate some good quality items to the charity shop as a compromise.

Your friend sounds like she's a member of the moral police patrol...

You paid for the items, the money you originally paid goes to the charity, which is the whole point of a charity shop.

My sister makes decent money from scouring charity shops for good quality/niche items, she pays for them , cleans them up/ styles them , then sells them online for a profit. I think it's clever. The charity shop owners love her as she buys alot, they know what she does as a 2nd income and they think it's great!

The charity set the price, you paid it. Someone else was prepared to pay more for it so did via you. The charity hasn't lost out

I found a book I really wanted - brand new in a hospital charity shop. They were raising money for a scanner, and were selling the book for £1.50.
I paid £5 for it - had to haggle the price up with the chap behind the counter because I knew it was worth (to me) more than £1.50 and I really hate that hospitals have to rely on charity to gain vital equipment.

@Lockheart

If the charity wanted to make more money, they could have priced the item higher.

Not necessarily. The bag might not have sold for £75 in the shop - a shops audience is limited to those who physically go into the shop.

Putting it online opens it up to thousands more potential buyers, including those who are prepared to pay £75 who may never have gone into the shop.

It's another factor charity shops have to consider - they get a lot of donations so they need to move stock quickly. There is fuck all point having a bag taking up space for months because it's priced at e.g £100 (which yes, it may get be worth online but not on the high street in your specific town) when you can sell it for £25 and have done with it.

I'm actually surprised charity shops haven't jumped on the online market (especially during the pandemic when they couldn't open the shops), they could easily cherry pick branded stuff stuff out a list online to maximise the amounts they get

What the charity shop got for the items was no doubt based on factors such as presentation, demographics of the area and volume of foot traffic to the shop. They may have never sold the items if they priced them higher or the shop may have become overcrowded with unsold goods.

Ebay is a world wide forum where people specifically look for better quality vintage items. People know that if they don’t buy, they’ll miss out.

As long as you paid full asking price I can’t see the problem.

The charity should have priced the items higher if that is what they are worth to people. I don't think you did anything wrong.

@UserStillatLarge

That's a reach. Op could easily have bought them because she liked them, and then looked them up and discovered they were worth something, at which point she realised she liked the cash more than the item. Which is completely fine.

I buy a lot of items from charity shops because I like them. I have literally never looked up how much I could get for them on ebay. Why would you do this if you'd bought an item you planned to use? I agree the OP is being disingenuous.

Ypu've never done it, so no-one has? Some people are determined to see malice and lies when there is another likely and perfectly harmless explanation. Why is that, do you think?

I'm actually surprised charity shops haven't jumped on the online market (especially during the pandemic when they couldn't open the shops), they could easily cherry pick branded stuff stuff out a list online to maximise the amounts they get

A lot of them have, and do exactly that.

You're right - I'm sure that OP decided to look up the item on ebay purely out of curiously and not because there was any thought in her mind to sell the items if turned out they were worth more than she'd paid for them.

It's quite a normal thing to do. Dealers look for bargain in charity shops and often buy things which are too expensive for the average charity shop customer.

You've done nothing wrong but you don't have to go around telling everyone what you do.

I disagree, I have loads of thing I like that I would never sell no matter what they value for now. I have 6 first edition books I bought from a car boot that I have had 20 years, they are value at over 4k per book. I still haven't, and won't sell them. They are listed in my will to go to my daughter when my time on earth comes to an end

Strange post

You bought them then put them on eBay and are now acting all shocked that you made a profit

Why would you buy them and put them on eBay if you didn't think you would profit?

@HalzTangz a lot of them do this, however it's quite time intensive compared to their shops. It's a balance between being able to move stock quickly enough and at a high enough price to make it worth their while.

@Tryingtryingandtrying

What would happen if you came across a first edition Harry Potter book 1 priced for £2.50. Would you buy it and sell it for its true value or let the manager know?

I did something similar to this (not HP). Kind of kicking myself now, as a staff member may have just scooped it up.

I just liked the book, wasn't looking to profit, but realised it was worth £££ and it didn't sit right with me to get it for pp.

If I did it over, I'd buy the book then donate a £ sum to the charity.

My opinion of charity shops has changed. I found out what goes on in some. Some have staff on ridiculous wages for a shop.
I am also loath to either donate or use them due to those who buy to sell on ebay for profits.
Each to their own , I would feel wrong doing this. But thats just me.

How do people think antique and collectables dealers source their goods?
Charity Shops
Car Boot Sales
Job lots off Facebook Marketplace
Etc
Perfectly normal way to make money. It takes a lot of time and research to seek out specific items to sell and to have knowledge about that item.

@HalzTangz

I disagree, I have loads of thing I like that I would never sell no matter what they value for now. I have 6 first edition books I bought from a car boot that I have had 20 years, they are value at over 4k per book. I still haven't, and won't sell them. They are listed in my will to go to my daughter when my time on earth comes to an end

That's nice. Has anyone ever told you that other people may be different from you?

But YANBU OP. Charity got good price, weren't stuck with item for ages, and you added value. Win win.

@HalzTangz

I disagree, I have loads of thing I like that I would never sell no matter what they value for now. I have 6 first edition books I bought from a car boot that I have had 20 years, they are value at over 4k per book. I still haven't, and won't sell them. They are listed in my will to go to my daughter when my time on earth comes to an end

I'd imagine if you couldn't afford food or to house yourself, you'd probably sell them!

@viques

The charity shop needs to be thinking about how they market higher value items if they are getting a lot of them in their donations, either by eBaying them or using other selling forums. If they are canny enough to to recognise the valuable items, they need to think about how they sell them.

One thing you could do is sign up to gift aid if you are eligible and use the shop regularly. It can make a huge difference to the shops income. For donors every ten pounds worth of your goods the charity sells it can claim £2.50 back from the government. A similar sum on amounts you spend in the shop.

That's not how gift aid works. Gift aid is for cash donations to charity, not for goods donated to charity shops or on charity sales of goods.

Haven’t read the thread

Not wrong at all.

I do this. It’s how I pay for my luxuries.

I have a knack for it.

I buy and trade in charity DVDs and games to pay for my own gaming habit.

Your friend is being ridiculous. You buy the item from a charity shop. Said item belongs to you therefore you may do whatever you like with the item.

What you did was legal, but this:

found a couple of items for sale that I liked

is 100% bollocks. You didn't buy them because you liked them, but because you wanted to sell them on and spied an opportunity to make a profit. At least be honest.