Charity shops...

[Dinski]

Does anyone else think that certain charity shops have become ridiculously expensive? Where I live there are 5 or 6 charity shops. I really like charity shopping as you can find some original and fun stuff but lately I've found them very disappointing.

Some of the shops have ridiculously priced items in my opinion. I know they are charities but some of them want more for a pair of worn 'label' jeans than they actually cost new. I saw a pair of horrible used Gap jeans going for £25 in one of the shops and this is common. The worst culprits are Cancer Research and Oxfam which have ridiculous prices. In some ways I don't blame them as they are a charity and their whole principle is to make as much money as possible but perhaps they should realise that a lot of people who shop in charity shops aren't rich and are looking in them precisely because they cannot afford to buy everything at the most expensive shops brand new.

Sorry but it just really gets my goat when I see some of the price labels

 

[oldermum]

Same here, our worst culprit is PDSA(animal charity), they moved stores,had a refit and put there prices way up, i don't go there anymore.

I love bargain hunting but you can't when prices are that high.

 

[Manda&Thomas]

british heart foundation by me is very very exspencive so i wont buy a thing in there but i regualy go into banardos pdsa cancer reserch (my all time fav for bags ) and sue rider plus a couple other i cant think of lol
manda x

 

[Minxy]

I love charity shopping but agree to some extent. British Heart Foundation is the worst here too.

I think part of the problem is new goods have become so ridiculously inexpensive. When you can buy a T-shirt in Tesco or Primark for £1.50 how can charity shops undercut it?

How many times have you seen an 'Atmosphere' top for £3.50 in a charity shop when you know it probably cost that new?!

I would have to say something if I saw £25 jeans though Dinski

 

[sparky]

I love charity shopping but agree to some extent. British Heart Foundation is the worst here too.

I think part of the problem is new goods have become so ridiculously inexpensive. When you can buy a T-shirt in Tesco or Primark for £1.50 how can charity shops undercut it?

How many times have you seen an 'Atmosphere' top for £3.50 in a charity shop when you know it probably cost that new?!

I would have to say something if I saw £25 jeans though Dinski

sooo true!! pi**es me off too, used to love my sat traul through the charity shops in edinburgh - particulalry morningside where most of the millionares live...got a lush gucci jumper for a fiver once...now they want £40+ for the designer stuff!

 

[Emmylou]

Do you think ebay has made a difference to charity shops?

I always wonder, cos now instead of taking everything to the charity shop, I sort through and send only half of what I used to to the charity shop?! The rest goes onto ebay - I wonder if they need to put the prices up because they get less stuff or less shoppers or something?

Although - £25 for a pair of GAP jeans is a bit bonkers......and you probably would get them cheaper on ebay!

 

[Dee1985]

i got to alot of charity shops and they are so expensive now! a t.shirt is £6 in primark they are new and nicer for £3

 

[Minxy]

My friend manages a charity shop and only a tiny percentage of what's given makes it onto the shop floor. They definitely don't struggle with the amount of donations.

I sometimes wonder if they struggle with the quality because of Ebay though. Like you, if I think I can get anything for it I sell rather than donate now

 

[Emmylou]

My friend manages a charity shop and only a tiny percentage of what's given makes it onto the shop floor. They definitely don't struggle with the amount of donations.

I sometimes wonder if they struggle with the quality because of Ebay though. Like you, if I think I can get anything for it I sell rather than donate now

Of course......I bet they do struggle with the quality I sort my stuff by what I think is a) worth selling and b) worth the time in selling it. So most of the stuff I send to the charity shop is stuff that I'd only get a £1.00 for on ebay or wouldn't be worth the bother, as by the time you take the fees out of it you get nothing.

 

[hannahbet20]

yeah i spotted a wedding dress in the window of a charity shop looked at the price £800 it wasnt that nice and seriously you could get a really good one from a proper wedding shop for that much i couldnt believe it and some of the toys were as much if not more than they charge for new i used to go in the charity shops all the time i dont anymore the ones round me are stupidly overpriced.

 

[Minxy]

It depends on your motives as well. I still like to buy second hand as it keeps stuff out of landfill and prevents more new goods being made.

I'm looking for a pre-loved wedding dress at the moment. Wouldn't pay £800 though!

 

[Dinski]

I'm looking for a pre-loved wedding dress at the moment. Wouldn't pay £800 though!

Minxy, when I got married in September I wore my mum's 1960s wedding dress that I had altered to fit me. It is really beautiful Audrey Hepburn style vintage silver dress and I had an empire waist put in it so it looked really cute. I thought a lot of the modern wedding dresses looked a bit cheap and too flouncy. I just wanted something simple and elegant and I really love vintage/retro anyway so it was perfect for me

 

[Minxy]

That sounds beautiful!

I don't fit a lot of vintage clothes and to be honest I like a bit of frill and flounce but I think every bride should feel special and a bit different on her big day!

 

[leckershell]

I have also found Oxfam to be expensive. I used to work in the back - I suppose you could call it quality control. I was used to charity shops so priced things at what I would pay for them in any other charity shop, but the others thought I was charging too cheap which just really annoyed me, I mean if I wouldn't pay that price then no one else would.

All the stuff that goes out should have a date on it somewhere and every few weeks the charity branches do swaps so that stuff that didnt sell in one shop might in another, and to make stock rotate nicely.

They have got expensive though. I tend to use ebay a lot but that's because I'm lazy! Have to be careful of the postage costs on ebay though, as heavy things like shoes/jeans/coats the postage really bumps the price up.

 

[hannahbet20]

im jelous at the mo cause my oh's dad is getting married to a women hes only known for 6 months and there wedding sounds so posh me and oh have been together over 5 years and i soo want to get married he does too but i want a nice wedding and holiday we could do it but we would have to take the kids on our honeymoon i think we will wait cause i need to loose some weight but i keep browsing for dresses and other stuff i want molly to be a bit older and be a flower girl that would be soo sweet.