Charity shops aren't doing themselves any favours

[Downatthefarm]

I can afford to buy new but prefer to buy second hand. I enjoy the experience of sifting through the varied clothes in the charity shops and finding things I wouldn't otherwise see on the high street at that time, and of course I like other thrifters love a good bargain.

Over the last 5 years charity shops have really gone downhill where I am. They price second / third hand clothes similarly to the original RRP, sometimes even more expensive.

They are stocking more and more brand new items, like Frenchic furniture paint, priced higher than it costs at places like Wilko's and B&Q.

I already know somebody will say "the shops purpose is to raise as much money for their charity as they can, not to cater to people who don't have much money" but hasn't being accessible to people with low incomes and being good value for money always been one of the most appealing aspects of them?

I still donate but do the vast majority of my own second hand buying on vinted now and I know lots of others are doing the same.

AIBU?

That makes sense if they have good brand - things that cost £50-£60 new for a tenner. Or even slightly more. Bargain!
It's all the Boohoo and Primark crap for the same price that people find ridiculous. I don't think shops should even bother with those, get them recycled or sell them off by weight.

I never bother looking in charity shops anymore, the prices have gone crazy, I still donate to the two I’ve always supported but when you see items you’ve donated priced higher than you paid new it’s a bit disheartening especially as you’ve given it to help them & to help the less fortunate.
most people sell their unwanted items on vinted & facebook in my region & it seems to be a thriving business.

I go in charity shops all the time as DS has complex SEN, and one of his things is to look at DVDs. Charity shops near me always have a good selection! We always come away with at least one and I always drop off a donation or a bag of donations as I’m going there anyway.

I have a little look round whilst DS is browsing the DVDs and I’m always shocked at how expensive things are. £3 for a fair condition womens primark vest top, £1.25 for an usborne poppy and Sam incomplete sticker book (one of those that is about £1 each when in a set of ten for £10ish) …

The staff are really nice to my DS though!

There should be stats on how much they throw away.Honestly, even if we put it out for free nobody is going to want the used underwear, the balled up socks, the stained clothes, the unsafe electrics, the broken crockery, the sheets clearly just taken off a bed and shoved in a black bag, the shoes with the soles hanging off, the toys with parts missing, the half filled in colouring books etc. I actually vomited last week because a donation stank so much of mould. Guess what? I told the volunteers to not even bother going through the other bags that person donated because it was so disgusting.Not to mention the stuff we LEGALLY can't sell such as car seats, furniture without the fire safety labels, anything with a moving blade etc.Also, you'd be surprised by the amount we send to the rag man because people dump it outside when the shop is closed and it either gets rained on or an animal gets to it.As an aside, the people on this thread who have said they mark bags as rag when they donate it - just know that the staff LOVE you for doing that.

Sorry, my paragraphs disappeared. Should say

There should be stats on how much they throw away.

Honestly, even if we put it out for free nobody is going to want the used underwear, the balled up socks, the stained clothes, the unsafe electrics, the broken crockery, the sheets clearly just taken off a bed and shoved in a black bag, the shoes with the soles hanging off, the toys with parts missing, the half filled in colouring books etc. I actually vomited last week because a donation stank so much of mould. Guess what? I told the volunteers to not even bother going through the other bags that person donated because it was so disgusting.

Not to mention the stuff we LEGALLY can't sell such as car seats, furniture without the fire safety labels, anything with a moving blade etc.

Also, you'd be surprised by the amount we send to the rag man because people dump it outside when the shop is closed and it either gets rained on or an animal gets to it.

As an aside, the people on this thread who have said they mark bags as rag when they donate it - just know that the staff LOVE you for doing that.

Nah
charity shop is consumerism less the guilt
All used , and I give to charity bath the same time
i just like to buy shit !

Most are still very cheap in Yorkshire but a few like cancer research and british heart foundations prices are too high.

@slashlover "...you'd be surprised by the amount we send to the rag man because people dump it outside when the shop is closed and it either gets rained on or an animal gets to it.
As an aside, the people on this thread who have said they mark bags as rag when they donate it - just know that the staff LOVE you for doing that."

Was interested to read this. Is that genuinely useful? It's something I've always done but was never sure whether it was pointless or not. I've always marked them as clean rags.

I read recently that textile markets in West Africa are inundated with UK cheap as chips cast-offs and it's damaging the local clothes industry.

I was wondering whether it might be best for donors to assess for themselves whether there's realistically any chance that their old clothes are likely to sell. And if not, then why not cut them up and designate as rags so that at least the charity here gets some benefit and it doesn't end up damaging the garment industry in Ghana.

I was in our local cancer research the other day and there was a nice but v.well worn basic grey H&M t shirt priced at £7.99. I moved on.

I understand they have targets to make and rent to pay but who on earth is going to pay nearly £8 for a bobbly t-shirt?

On the whole, I find it better to visit more shops that support more local/smaller charities as they seem to be a bit more realistic about their pricing.

Not relevant! The best thing would be for fast fashion to be taxed significantly honestly!
Yes I get that people need clothes - fair enough if it was actually things like school uniforms etc but places like BooHoo aren't selling essentials.
Every shop has constant sales nowadays and as PP said people are selling on Vinted etc to make ends meet but how did they accumulate so much in the first place?
The amount of waste is maddening.
We don't NEED that many clothes. Nobody does. And it's bad for the planet

What would you suggest we try to sell crusty single socks and empty DVD boxes for? Or chipped mugs and frying pans with the non-stick coating peeling off? Or colouring books with all the pages coloured in? Or games with half the bits missing? Or a duvet cover with a massive dubious stain in the middle? Or a jumper which has been worn so much it has gone through on the elbows?

This is an irritation of mine too. I give them good secondhand clothing. They overprice it. If it doesn't sell, instead of reducing the price they bundle it up and sell it by weight. The result is less money for the charity and no opportunity to feel good about my clothes being bought because people like them.

Some of the prices are unrealistic on the online ones too. I saw a handbag I previously had and loved and it was on at £45 or make an offer. I had bought it new at 60 from the outlet store so thought 45 used was ridiculously high. I offered 30 and gave my explaination why but my offer was turned down. It’s still on sale now and has been since March. Looked on vinted and the same thing was £18 !

What charity shop do you go in that 'wants to round it up' I have never been asked to do this ever!

I think a lot of people here actually have no idea of what it takes to run a charity shop, how much rubbish is donated rather than take it to the tip they leave bags of tat out side the shop and even bring it in with better stuff on top and rubbish underneath, this can actually include dirty used underwear! shoes that are just revolting etc they can only sell good stuff if it is donated in the 1st place.
They only have 2 paid staff at any time - they only get just above basic wages and that includes the Manager.
Please do not believe some of the rubbish being spouted on here - they really do not have a clue.
BTW - they have to pay rent, rates and bills like all other shops

Agree with @GenieGenealogy some of the donations we receive are absolutely disgusting: shirts so dirty they are ‘crusty’, mouldy clothes, items which stink of tobacco, scratched DVDs, half empty boxes of panty liners-
all of has to be thrown away. Do people really think we can sell those items?

Completely agree with you OP

At BHF we mark down items after 14 days.

What baffles me is... after all these difficulties, rubbish donated, lack of staff, rent rates etc... how do they actually turn a profit? IF they are indeed overpriced, who's buying?

Like any other business it doesn't matter how hard it is for you to run it. That's not the customer's problem. If charity shops fail to profit then they'll just consider other fundraising methods, won't they? Like these constant marathons/skydives/whatever that I constantly get hounded to donate to at work!

YES! It's the difference between something going straight into the rag bag or us having to spend time working through it only to find there's nothing worth selling. We would save so much time we could use on other things if people did that.

Unfortunately donors are more likely to overestimate the worth of their donations due to having a sentimental link to them. (the Endowment Effect). We're often given the contents of the wardrobe of someone who has died, nobody in that position is going to be able to label their parents/siblings/partners/friends items as rag which is completely understandable.

Well exactly, @PomTiddlyPom . If they don't make enough money then they will be closed down. And the fact that the figures show that charity shop sales across the whole sector are up 18.4% this year shows that people are obviously finding stuff they want to buy, at a price they want to pay.

I will take mine there next time. I don't send in tat. I only send in stuff I would buy second hand. Usually nice kids' clothing.

@PomTiddlyPom
we do also get some fabulous donations. Today I put out about 40 paperbacks in excellent condition, lovely mugs, le creuset casserole dish, nice quality clothing. Some of the books sold just after I put them out.

What charity shop do you go in that 'wants to round it up' I have never been asked to do this ever!

Mine does (national chain). It used to be the 25p on the card machine but now it's round up. I don't ask but will put it through if someone says to keep the 10p change or whatever. Head office don't recognise that might be fine in the shops in posher areas but we are essentially at the "discount" side of the shops.

I was in a charity shop looking at some glass vases when someone came out with a big plastic bin and started throwing them in ..madness. I hadn't decided on buying one as they weren't that cheap but C's seem to prefer to throw things rather than reduce prices. My husband was at the tip and a charity can was throwing while tea sets into the tip.

I think sometimes shops don’t realise what brands are expensive and which aren’t so they’re priced a bit off at times. Like primark tops for £3 when they probably retail at that.

I still shop in them and still pick up lots of bargains. Always find lots of Boden and picked up a great Tommy Hilfiger shirt for my husband the other day.