To think a charity shop is taking the piss asking these prices?

[FrasierReboot]

Went into a charity shop today. Yes, I get that the charity needs to make money etc etc but....

£40 for worn bobbly Primark and George at Asda coats. Would probably have been half that price brand new

£7 for worn jeans with holes in the bum and or/crotch or seams, again brands such as Primark or George.

AIBU to think this is mad?

Nobody twists anybody's arm to buy anything in a charity shop, if you don't like the price, don't buy. If you support the charity then consider other ways to donate.

@Dymaxion again I don't understand that. Why would they put something broken on sale. I think that was probably a miscommunication error somewhere along the line.
Did you point it out to them?

I think they are the best - I give all our stuff to the local one.

Our local chazzers have almost all hoiked their prices sky high - £15 for well-worn dresses and trousers. And they all have “brand new seconds” donated by labels at the minute which they’re asking £40+ for. No way. If I buy second hand I want the price to reflect that. I give no shits about “having to pay their business rates “ - if they have to charge full shop prices to do that then the business model is no longer viable. And it seems I’m right - the same gear on the rails for weeks on end these days.

I was in a charity shop earlier this week, saw a wrap dress by a fancy designer, with at least 9 or 10 tiny holes on the front , clearly had previously been owned by someone who liked a joint. It couldn’t have been fixed , it was £35…

I popped in the a Salvation Army shop as I walked past today to make a quick donation and the lady kept trying to get me to buy something. I.told her I don't want anything I'm just making a donation but she really pushed me to look around again. I left the money on the counter and left. I've never had that before.

@Needmorelego no I didn't point it, I needed to be somewhere else, but I did buy a book, because I always feel guilty leaving without buying

I blame Mary Portas. She went round charity shops and made them be business-like and put their prices up etc. Now the shops are boring and insipid, and overpriced. So, basically now they are like all other high street shops then!
I suspect some don't read the room very well when considering their passing traffic and customer base.

I have a range I go to and they read the room and take different approaches. Shop 1 has a higher price structure overall, but the shop is lovely, well organised, the stock is good, and the pricing is higher than you'd get on Vinted but not unreasonably high. They get some very nice items in that are more expensive for obvious reasons.

Shop 2 in a different town tends to be lower on the prices, occasionally you get a great bargain, store isn't as well organised but the turnover of stock is good so for this area they're probably prioritising turnover of stock. Both are great shops.

Shop 3 I know used to be like Shop 2, but has now hiked it's prices up closer to Shop 1's. The problem is that the stock isn't as good, it's mainly supermarket, online ultra fast fashion, and low to mid high street, and the store itself isn't as nice an experience. Before I used to look forward to having a look in Shop 3 but now I don't tend to bother because I'm not spending almost £10 on an H&M dress or £5 for a supermarket t shirt.

They had labelled the item "doesn't work". Why would it need pointing out to them?

Charity shops especially Cancer Research are run by ex high street managers that have a heavy emphasis on sales.

When I volunteered there a number of years back, they paid the store manager minimum wage and expected him to work late and come up with all sorts of sales initiatives.

These are charities in name only.

p.s. See behaviour of Oxfam execs a few years back.

Just a general point but in the 80s or 90s, I'm sure second hand items were pretty cheap (especially clothes).

Now it is surprising how much people can get for used clothes on vinted etc. even if not collectors items.

@StarlightLime because the volunteer who puts stuff on the shelf is often a different person to the one who sorts and prices the stock.
Stocker sorter volunteer could have left it on the table with a bunch of other stock waiting to go out. They could have left it there because they weren't 100% sure what they were meant to do with it (ie which bin it should go in) and was going to ask later but didn't get chance.
Put on shelf volunteer came in and was told to put all the stuff on the table out. That volunteer may have learning difficulties and not been able to read the sticker.
Genuine mistake putting it out.

Charity shops are (mostly) thriving and successful and are an incredibly important source of income for charities.

But like every organisation you will get some that get it wrong. In this case if they are truly over charging then they won't perform. This will show up in their sales returns and will in turn get addressed by management.

@StarlightLime , some items still have value even if broken.

Although not that expensive ours have got pricey , the heart foundation is the worst , but the others are catching up ,but they don't seem short of customers.

I volunteer for Cancer Research.
Books generally 2 for £1, unless signed or first edition.
All toys are £1 this week, unless brand new.
We have new electric blankets, a new range of vases.
Clothes mostly under £5.00.
and we have sold packs of Christmas cards for 99p since October.

If anyone would like to bring in a packet of biscuits for the volunteers who have been working their little bottoms off that would be fab.

Donations welcome. AMA.

DS worked in a charity shop for a while. They would not even sell Primark items.

I donated an unwanted Christmas present to a charity shop I went back the next week it had £10 on. I'd bought it for three quid. Mind boggles.

The Cancer Research shop in my town is terrible for this. I’ve seen the same items still on rails weeks later because the prices are ridiculous.

I agree charity shop prices are insane, but £40 for George sounds a little too unbelievable. I did see a Mountain Warehouse raincoat in a charity shop the other day. It was used and was priced at £20 with "RRP £50" on the tag. But how can I be sure that the previous owner hasn't washed it with normal detergent and ruined the waterproof coating? Madness.

Yes yes yes

one of my local ones is absolutely unhinged. I uploaded some pics and prices on here and got roasted by people telling me they have to make money for the charity etc but they had old bashed baking trays for £5 and an old TU coat for £30 and a bobbly Zara coat for £75(!)

photos for proof of crazy: these beano albums for £18 each and a broken ornament for £45

I can just about ignore the prices (although the ones in the OP are crazy), what I can't ignore is the fact that they all seem to have closed their changing rooms.

Yes I know I can return it, but it would be lovely to actually try on items rather than see the old changing room area used as a display area.

I was in the charity shop yesterday and saw a £26 monsoon cardigan, the sort of silky material complete with catches on it.

I also saw a super dry jacket with a burst zip for £55.

Books are £3.99 each, no offers on like 3 for £10 or anything.

@Seedsout are you sure it's £18 EACH ? Because that is ridiculously high for Beano's of that era. Rare 1940s ones maybe.
You do wonder what they use as a price guide.
This is why I don't mind paying a bit more in Oxfam (as I said upthread) because sometimes they employ someone who is actually a specialist in old books who goes around several branches to check the books and look for rare ones etc.