Charity Shop Ignorance

KatieKins

Thats so terrible, I probably would have wanted to say something too. However, my OH doesn't come in with me so nobody to stop me lol.

Reverbe

lolababy wrote: »

Hi .I dont donate to the British heart foundation anymore as they charge high prices. Id rather give to a charity who would only charge a small amount. Lots of people rely on these shops for their clothing so I dont think its fair to have high prices.
Im all for the charity to make a profit but not at the expense of the least well off .

Ours has gone potty with what they charge.. books are now £2.50 and over..recently I have seen them charge £65 for a bog standard non designer handbag and £250 for a mens suit (to which an interested shopper said well you are getting it for free.. and you know what he was RIGHT!!):eek:

u1bd2005

The pricing in charity shops also depend on the location of the shop and the amount of money the shop is making.

At the moment due to our location and the amount of money we're making our shop is in the middle band I think. which means our prices aren't too bad compared to the other charity shops nearby.

Though our profits keep increasing and we keep winning regional shop of the month (highest % increase) from time to time and even national shop of the month once too. And if this continues I can see our regional manager putting us into the higher band, which straight away means price increases. which i dont think is fair for our customers and will straight away lead to lower profits in my opinion.

Though the staff are usually very willing to listen to volunteers opinions and to be fair we're currently pricing most stuff below the price guides we've been given anyway (as the guides are overpriced.) so i don't think it will change much.

wontfallforit

I've given a lot of stuff to charity over the years, amounting to hundreds of pounds worth (possibly more). I never take tat to a charity shop, always quality goods that I know somebody would appreciate. Every time I have a clear-out every few months, the charity shops are my first port of call.

I can count on one hand the amount of times I've been thanked for my donations, or even had them acknowledged. I don't expect the staff to sing my praises or fall at my feet, but I do expect eye contact and a friendly smile as a minimum.

It's gotten to the point where I bypass certain shops and donate directly to a local shop which sells goods to raise money for a hospice. As said, I don't want a song and dance, a simple "thank you - can you please place your bag over there..." is sufficient.

I don't have any particular affiliations to any specific charities - I've always been happy to spread my donations around - but not any more

Tippytoes

I used to get loads of real bargains from charity shops. However, prices are getting ridiculous. My local charity shop has a bridalwear department. I've seen dresses on display in the window for £500+! Unbelievably greedy on the part of the charity shops. Because of this, I no longer donate goods - instead I sell them at bootsales or on ebay. Many charity shops seem to have shot themselves in the foot.

u1bd2005

oh yeh, another thing i missed out in my post, I ALWAYS thank customers for donations, as well as thanking anyone who buys anything, and most people who just browse too, which is hard for me because i used to be a very shy person. but I agree that some staff (the minority) in other charity shops haven't been quite as polite. though the majority of them are great.

If someone who was as shy as what I used to be when I started volunteering can thank people then other people should be able to do it, it's really not very hard.

I must say, in the 8 month i've been volunteering I have really improved in my confidence.

I-Owe-You

The Cancer Research Shop in Romford, Essex on Friday were selling some worn dorothy perkins shoes for £20!! I couldn't believe it! Surely no one is going to pay that when they were likely to have been £25/£30 brand new??

I also noticed multipul "New" items in there (I mean wholesale)... kind of defeats the object a little doesnt it? I can go in Primark is I want racks of the same clothes...

My boyfriend spotted a limited edition PS3 game's character figure/bust in the window before Christmas and asked how much it was, the lady responded £35... it isnt actually that "limited" and you can buy it new for £30 online!

I also hate to see the generic George at Asda and Primark toot marked up at £4/£5...

I live in Central London so our shops are charging ridiculous amounts, perhaps partly due to the overheads...

I also happen to know CRUK pays admin junior staff in their main office £24k (I get their job alerts via my work) so makes me wonder how much to my donation is actually going to "research"

I always donate my unwanted clothes etc... but now take them to my local hospice shop where Im a little more confident that a greater % of the money made from my donations are actually going to benefit the charity and not some middle managers pocket...

Interesting thread - thanks OP!

lora

I thought I was the only person to donate to charity shops and not even be thanked. Sometimes I have walked a distance with heavy bags and struggled in to be looked at as if I came from another planet. I just want the items to go to a good cause but I have had the same reaction from quite a few different shops.

anamenottaken

mirry wrote: »

we went in one a few weeks ago and they had a young girl working in there with obvious learning difficulties and the manager spoke to her like S***.

I was going to say something , but my hubby told me not to ,lol.

In that case I would seek out the HO address and write to the HR department there, describing the situation in sufficient detail for them to understand what happened and when.

There may be more than one "manager" or PwLD working there, so the actual time and a brief description would be useful to pinpoint the individuals concerned.

Mids_Costcutter

One policy where a number of charity shops seem to demonstrate particular ignorance is their policy of leaving their front door open even on the coldest winter days. This must significantly increase heating costs and makes me reluctant to support these charities. When challenged shop staff have claimed that they have to do this otherwise customers wouldn't come in. BHF even admitted in an email that this is company policy at all their shops.

I can't say that I am more likely to visit a shop when the door is open: what matters is what the shop offers. In fact for me the opposite is true: I don't like browsing for books when a freezing cold draught is coming through the door! Why do some charity shops have this open door policy? I don't believe that there is any real evidence regarding customer numbers and an open door policy. What do others think?