Why do charity shops do this?

[LuLuLemonadeDrinker]

A couple of local charity shops near me both constantly have signs up outside on an A-Board, saying that they are not taking donations. However, both of these have very little stock inside, and are both very overpriced. For example, a worn, very bobbly Primark jumper for £7, and a Boohoo polyester dress for £12.

One in particular is just depressing to go into; I went in the other day for the first time in two months and some of the overpriced clothes that were there then were still hanging there, still for sale. The rails were also pretty empty. The board was outside as usual requesting no donations. There were 5 members of staff in the shop.

I really don't get it; surely it would be far better, and raise far more money, if they had more stock out, and priced it at lower prices for a quicker turnover. I really can't see the shop I went in yesterday raising much money at all, as there's never anything in there really to buy.

I'm sure some posters will reply saying it's a 'charity shop bashing thread', and yes, it is! I want to support charities and want to buy pre owned items but shops like this aren't exactly going to raise any money!

Wouldn't people buy to sell for profit?

Would that matter?

Agree @LuLuLemonadeDrinker

We also have the same problem with books! In a naice area where very decent books are getting donated (mil used to volunteer!) and we have 4 of the same Catherine Cookson-esque ones on the shelves! I suppose the volunteers aren't necessarily knowledgeable tbf, but it is frustrating.

Some will and some won't.
I wouldn't hand good things with a value to a £2 shop.

I’ve seen bobbly jumpers that we would not sell, but generally they are cheap. Not that I think that makes them saleable either.
most of the items I see which are, imo, overpriced tend to be brands where someone has only looked at the name and not the quality of the item. A shabby Boden item is not going to sell at a high price just because it’s Boden.

Where I live we have 4 charity shops and they’re all great. I buy high quality clothes, amazing crockery (and the occasional bargain that I sell on eBay- which might get me told off!).

That’s great.
It must be frustrating then the shop seems to have a few issues.

My DH is very frugal and eco minded and hates throwing things out. We often have arguments over what is fit to go to the charity shop. I must admit I over rule him, if I don't think I'd buy it on quality grounds I don't send it. But he would send a lot more low quality stuff thinking he was being eco.

Which they are spending on shop overheads for a shop that isn’t raising funds… sad times

Nail on the head. They may also be having a short term problem getting rid of the clothes etc that are unsellable if their usual firm (i.e. that buys clothes by weight) has stopped collecting or stopped trading and they need to find a different firm to collect all the crap. Likewise may be struggling to pay for waste disposal costs of all the other crap they can't sell, i.e. broken toys, damaged books, etc. Very little of what is donated can actually be sold through the shop, most has to be sold by weight or disposed of - that all takes time and can be costly. Waste disposal isn't cheap - councils don't do free waste collections if it's not a domestic premises.

I do wonder about this sometimes- presumably everyone thinks their donations are good, so if I think that then perhaps I’m just deluding myself? I only ever donate stuff that I think someone would realistically want to buy. But perhaps everyone thinks they’re doing that 😬

Same here. People really don’t want your clean but with holes boxers.. just bin them!

People don’t think that their donations are useful.. it’s a way of getting rid of their tat without going to the tip. That is why people leave their crap outside when the store is closed.

some people are just too lazy to take the items to the tip.
how can anyone believe broken crockery will sell?

Sad but true.

It's the best way to decide what to donate. Would I buy this myself? Would I pass it on to my mum/sister/friend? If not, don't donate it.

But a lot of people have weird ideas about worth. My inlaws are very difficult to deal with when it comes to donating stuff. They know what they paid for something in 1990 and think it is worth lots now. They won't accept that actually, 1990s cruise wear clothing is not going to fly off the shelves. Very worn out things still get donated because they are still able to be worn and not completely destroyed. They don't go into charity shops (someone might SEE them) so have no idea what stock is like.

I volunteer in a charity shop and I reckon at least 50% of what we get donated is unsellable very much as ShanghaiDiva says. Some people do seem to use charity shops as a dumping ground.

I should think the jumper cost less in Primark brand new!

My local charity shop has a “free to take” shelf in the doorway with clapped out goods, knackered mugs etc. I had a really pretty mug that I chipped and I was going to throw it out (who wants a chipped mug? i didn’t!) and I had the idea to put it straight on that shelf. It was gone the next day! (Perhaps someone used it for crafts or something, who knows?)

But yeah what use is a chipped mug, a disgusting cracked plate, when you can get a new one for next to nothing? We have a local rag recycling place now but for a little while I was putting holey t-shirts etc in the bin so they wouldn’t end up on a beach in Ghana!

Perhaps we just overestimate the common sense of the average person. Junk is junk.

you don’t bin clothing you put it in the clothes recycling 😶

I always used to do that and we now have a recycling place, but it was very unclear for a while what was happening with the fabric recycling. It seems that a lot of it was getting sold to unsuspecting dealers abroad when it was fit for nothing.

Have you considered offering up your own time and volunteering...?

I suspect it's this. Lots of people have got very used to thinking they can just palm all their old shit off on charity shops. They get used as a conscience easer for people who can't cope with throwing things away, as well as those who know full well it's crap but find it more convenient than the tip.

Sorting and disposal of all this stuff requires resources.

Unfit for resale - they sell it on by weight, no problem.

I use my much loved broken mugs as pots for indoor plants. Small plastic plant pots fit snugly inside.