New charity shop

[KrackersMaracas]

Just popped in and it was lovely - they've also got a tombola on which I thought was a nice way to raise some extra money.

[niall]

It's full of overpriced crap

[Lynne]

It may seem pricey,but you should look at non-charity shops. I've just come back from town and have decided Libertys needs a reality transplant. The prices!! The hideous clothes!!! The prices!!!!

Lynne

[easytiger]

Their stock is not pricey, the donated goods are are sold much cheaper than rrp so you can always find a bargain. Other donated goods sold cheap too. Good luck to them. 100% of their profit goes to saving children's live around the world. Donate what you can and don't be grumpy.

[alice]

probably the most expensive shop down lordship lane but so what.

[KalamityKel]

easytiger Wrote:

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> Their stock is not pricey, the donated goods are

> are sold much cheaper than rrp so you can always

> find a bargain. Other donated goods sold cheap

> too. Good luck to them. 100% of their profit goes

> to saving children's live around the world. Donate

> what you can and don't be grumpy.

I would hope second hand goods were sold cheaper than rrp! I think the point being made regarding prices that its a charity shop and shouldnt be expensive. As pointed out earlier charity shops should be working both ways - raising funds for their charity and also helping those less finanically well off by offering goods at incredibly affordable prices.

Many charity shops are forgetting this principal. Not that im saying there is necessarily anything wrong with this and it is business afterall and if people are willing to pay such prices... depends where your morals are i guess...

[Sue]

KalamityKel Wrote:

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>

> I would hope second hand goods were sold cheaper

> than rrp!

xxxxxx

But they aren't "second hand goods", are they?

My understanding is that they are new designer goods which have been donated by the designer to be sold for charity? Please somebody correct me if I'm wrong.

[KalamityKel]

If that's so then I stand corrected on the "second hand" comment. However, I still stand by the rest.

[Sue]

KalamityKel Wrote:

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> If that's so then I stand corrected on the "second

> hand" comment. However, I still stand by the

> rest.

xxxxxx

I think it's a different sort of charity shop to the usual kind, and the emphasis is on raising money for the charity rather than providing affordable things for the less well off.

That is why these Save the Children/Mary Portas shops are situated in relatively affluent areas.

The Waitrose/M&S of the charity shop world :)

I won't be able to afford to shop there, but hey I can't afford to shop in many of the shops round here any more, so it won't make much difference to me :))

Better this than another estate agent or run-of-the-mill Indian restaurant, surely?

[NewWave]

Its a mix of donated goods (which are usually marked on the price-tag 'local donation') and new designer donated items.

At least that is the case in the Notting Hill branch and seems to be the same here from what I could see.

As regards affordability of charity shops, I often find items by high street names such as Next and H&M etc which would cost only a couple of pounds more if brought brand new or brought on reduction in their sale.

For instance today I brought a t-shirt in H&M which was ?5.99 I saw similar in a charity shop-obviously worn for ?3.50

And in Primark you can get many garments way below ?10.

[Lynne]

It is more expensive than most charity shops, but so what? No-one's forcing anyone to go there. After buying for everyone else I decided to treat myself and bought a new item marked at ?50.00 on the old label for ?18.00

I don't think that's too bad.

And yes, I know I'll get a lecture from all the self-righteous of ED of which there seems to be a large number

Lynne

[Sue]

Lynne Wrote:

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> It is more expensive than most charity shops, but

> so what? No-one's forcing anyone to go there.

> After buying for everyone else I decided to treat

> myself and bought a new item marked at ?50.00 on

> the old label for ?18.00

> I don't think that's too bad.

> And yes, I know I'll get a lecture from all the

> self-righteous of ED of which there seems to be a

> large number

> Lynne

xxxxxx

That sounds like a bargain! Good for you.

What makes you think anybody is going to "lecture" you?

People are free to state their own opinion on here - that's what a forum is for, surely? It would be awfully dull if everybody had the same viewpoint .....

If you choose to label somebody's opinion as "self-righteous" because it happens to differ from yours, that's up to you :) Or is my saying that "self-righteous" too?!

[ruffers]

Kind of depends what you think the purpose of a charity shop is - raising maximum funds vs providing a cheap place to shop for those with less money, or how far either way you lean on that. See this piece from the Guardian on exactly that point from this week

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/dec/29/charity-shops-pricing-items-bargains

[Sue]

ruffers Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Kind of depends what you think the purpose of a

> charity shop is - raising maximum funds vs

> providing a cheap place to shop for those with

> less money, or how far either way you lean on

> that. See this piece from the Guardian on exactly

> that point from this week

>

> http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/dec/29/cha

> rity-shops-pricing-items-bargains

xxxxxxx

I saw that article, and this bit is interesting:

'One explanation for the rise in prices is that there is an increase in the number of dealers making excessive profits out of charity shops. One manager of a charity shop said: "We are trying to do what is best for everyone. We don't get it right every time, but we get it far more right than wrong. It has to be fair for the customer, for the donor and for the charity." '

I have in the past bought things myself from charity shops which were well underpriced, and if I had had the inclination I could have sold them on for a profit.

I think it is reasonable that certain things eg second hand designer clothes or on trend furniture are sold at the going rate to raise money for the charity, rather than to raise money for dealers.

More run-of-the-mill clothing, though, should be sold at lower prices. I too have seen (in the Mind shop, for example) clothes from cheap shops like Primark being sold at prices which were the same - or even more - than you could buy them new, which is just taking the piss.

[firemalc]

Just a note about overpriced clothing in the Mind Shop. Pricing of hundreds of items are done by volunteers based on the quality of the garment.Sometimes we get it wrong but we definitely do not "take the pxxx". An example of this was a "wavy" wall mirror being brought in around 10 years ago and everyone liked it and thought it was worth &9.99 of anyone's money. Unknown to us it was around 5.99 or less from Ikea.We promptly dropped the price. So yes we get it wrong and we are always happy to be informed of any discrepancies.

All but the managers of the Mind shop are volunteers or community service. Therefore are admin costs are very low allowing a greater percentage of the profits to be used by Mind, the same applies to St Christopher's. You will have noticed that the Mary Portas shop only makes a small percentage contribution to Save the Children.

[Sue]

firemalc Wrote:

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You will have

> noticed that the Mary Portas shop only makes a

> small percentage contribution to Save the

> Children.

xxxxxx

Is that true?

Where does the rest of the money go?

Where is this made clear in the shop itself?

ETA: Fair enough point re the Mind shop, btw, however most items of clothing have labels in them which make it clear when they are from Primark or whatever, so that is not at all the same as something like a mirror, which doesn't.

[easytiger]

Firemalc, where did you notice that they only contribute a small percentage to the charity?

It's shown inside the shop on the wall and if it bothers you contact save the children directly- 100% of net profit goes to save the children.

[alice]

suppose it depends what expenses they're taking off the gross profit.

save the children has always had a great gross/net ratio better than most

[Sue]

I've been in the shop once.

I found something I vaguely liked (sort of sheepskin lined waistcoat thing) and looked at the price.

It was ?300 reduced from ?600 !!!!! :))

Not sure it's worth my looking in there again, will stick to the hospice shop which has provided much of my wardrobe since it opened :))

I hope they do well, but I sort of feel that's taking the piss :(