Is it morally wrong....

steven77

Hi All

Just looking to start a discussion here, don't know if this one has ever taken place before. A while ago I bought a couple of bits from a charity shop, and then decided I didn't need them so resold them on Ebay and Amazon, but made a bit of profit on both.

It got me thinking about using this as a method to make money and pay off debts, but it makes me slightly uneasy feeling, like I've cheated the charity slightly. But have I? They got the money for the items, someone somewhere got an item they may not otherwise have been able to find, and I made some money to pay of debts.

Is it morally wrong to buy things from a Charity shop, purely with the aim being to profit from them?

Shoe_Gal

Personally, I think it is unless you donate any profit to the charity

pinkarsenalprincess

I can see both sides of the argument, but with our local charity shops charging more for primark stuff than primark themselves are charging for it I wouldn't be so bothered about selling stuff on.

dreamdreamer

I personally don't think so but can see both sides. The charity shops put things at low prices to ensure steady profits becaue they rely on said profits. They can't sit a jacket at £5 and wait 2 years for the person who's willing to pay that amount to come in, when hundreds might have paid £2 for it. Whilst the jacket you bought for £2 in a charity shop might sell for £5 on ebay, ebay has a HUGE audience compared to a charity shop on say, Felixstowe High St, so you're always going to sell for more on there. It's just basic economics.

reehsetin

Shoe_Gal wrote: »

Personally, I think it is unless you donate any profit to the charity

The charity shop have sold the item at a price they think is fair so I don't see why not, maybe a small proportion to charity but not all - what would be the point of doing it. The way I see it is if the charity shops were that bothered they should be setting the price higher or selling it online themselves.
It would be wrong if the person working there set the price so they could buy it cheaply and sell it on.

Robert_Roberston

I dont see how it's wrong really, the charity shop sell that for a price they think is fair and you are buying that item for the asking price.

They rely on donations and make a good chunk out of it, would you be asking the question if there was an error at your local M+S and you bought a load of bottles of plonk that they'd priced up wrong?

JasX

Shoe_Gal wrote: »

Personally, I think it is unless you donate any profit to the charity

So by that logic the OP should not start buying regularly from the charity shop and selling on ebay at their own risk to a wider audience and in turn be able to pay off their debts and perhaps stiimulate the economy slightly?

Thats is generally called initiative and enterprise I believe and is a very good thing.

Under your system the OP stays lumbered with debts they struggle to pay, the goods remain unsold in a dusty corner of the charity shop doing nobody any good, charity is deprived of money, shop closes, charity shop workers perhaps lose their jobs, OP suffers unesscessary hardship and someone somewhere who needed a coat is either paying over the odds for one made in china somewhere or else going cold?

If you think all that is morally correct you are very shortsighted and have some very unusual morals.

OP go for it -everyone involved will be much better off for your efforts

Will.ii.am

I see nothing wrong with it myself but if you do feel abit uneasy about it maybe just tot up how much you have made over a month and give alittle bit back,say you made £20 in a month give £5 back or however much u feels right,the charity has made more money than it would of and you can pay abit off your debt.

NouveauRiche

How do you think I got my username? :rotfl:

Seriously - I bought a 1960's print in the charity shop for £5. I sold it on ebay for £50, a couple of years ago.

Later that year, my conscience got the better of me and I donated £40 to the Salvation Army Christmas Appeal.

Once a Catholic, always a Catholic.

I hope I have now found my way back in good books with Him Upstairs!:j

Shoe_Gal

JasX wrote: »

So by that logic the OP should not start buying regularly from the charity shop and selling on ebay at their own risk to a wider audience and in turn be able to pay off their debts and perhaps stiimulate the economy slightly?

Thats is generally called initiative and enterprise I believe and is a very good thing.

Under your system the OP stays lumbered with debts they struggle to pay, the goods remain unsold in a dusty corner of the charity shop doing nobody any good, charity is deprived of money, shop closes, charity shop workers perhaps lose their jobs, OP suffers unesscessary hardship and someone somewhere who needed a coat is either paying over the odds for one made in china somewhere or else going cold?

If you think all that is morally correct you are very shortsighted and have some very unusual morals.

OP go for it -everyone involved will be much better off for your efforts

Touche!

However, I will continue to live by my unusual morals - and surely the original poster must have at least partially agreed to pose the question in the first place

Little_bit_dizzy

My MIL donates her time in the form of one day per week to the local charity shop. Just a few days ago she mentioned some of their best customers are Ebay sellers, who regularly buy from the shop in order to sell on Ebay for profit.

As she said, the shop are getting what they believe to be a fair price so they are happy with that, as it does all help cover overheads and generate a little profit for the charity.