What is your charity shop bargain of the week?

Blether

maman wrote: »

A little off topic but I wanted a moan:


Dropped of 3 bags of stuff at local CS today. Person behind the counter didn't smile, didn't say thank you, just barked at me whether I did Gift Aid.


I'm not expecting them to fall at my feet but with the 'donations urgently wanted' sign in the window a thank you wouldn't have gone amiss.:mad:

Think this is why they are struggling for donations. I handed in several boot loads of mostly new clothes to St Andrew's Hospice after I lost a lot of weight. I had to drive to a town about 6 miles away so made an effort to give my donations. They have a loyalty scheme where you get a stamp for every bag donated and once you fill a card you then can get £2 off purchases. They make you feel like a thief if you ask for the stamps and when you use them you get the usual comment of that's a bargain. Most of the time you don't even get help carrying the bags in never mind the cards. I could have made a massive amount of money at the car boot but I chose to give it to them. I know it's supposed to make you feel good but I was going out of my way and I don't think it was appreciated. I've gone back to giving to cash for clothes as it is much easier for me.

maman

Blether wrote: »

Think this is why they are struggling for donations. I handed in several boot loads of mostly new clothes to St Andrew's Hospice after I lost a lot of weight. I had to drive to a town about 6 miles away so made an effort to give my donations. They have a loyalty scheme where you get a stamp for every bag donated and once you fill a card you then can get £2 off purchases. They make you feel like a thief if you ask for the stamps and when you use them you get the usual comment of that's a bargain. Most of the time you don't even get help carrying the bags in never mind the cards. I could have made a massive amount of money at the car boot but I chose to give it to them. I know it's supposed to make you feel good but I was going out of my way and I don't think it was appreciated. I've gone back to giving to cash for clothes as it is much easier for me.

I think I'm going to take advice earlier and say 'I've changed my mind' and take elsewhere if I don't get a thank you in future. I'm still feeling miffed about my experience last week. If it was a national chain I think I'd write in and complain as they have paid managers who should be offering better staff training. Unfortunately the one I was offended by is a local charity.

luxor4t

maman wrote: »

A little off topic but I wanted a moan:


Dropped of 3 bags of stuff at local CS today. Person behind the counter didn't smile, didn't say thank you, just barked at me whether I did Gift Aid.


I'm not expecting them to fall at my feet but with the 'donations urgently wanted' sign in the window a thank you wouldn't have gone amiss.:mad:

We pulled up outside the CS unit at a nearby retail park. As we staggered in through the door, loaded with stuff, one of the assistants shouted across the shop "Donations next door!"


We got back into the car and took everything to another CS.

SCOYA

Just been reading through the thread and seeing the numerous comments regarding the rudeness of some of the volunteers, well I sincerely hope they're volunteers, in charity shops.

Having worked as a volunteer for a charity shop I used to 'fall over' myself to thank people for their donations as I have always donated myself and know how lovely it is to have that appreciation, sadly though there were a number of volunteers in the shop I was in that had never donated and essentially spent a lot of their time going through the rails and putting items aside for themselves!

I did say to the manager about some of the rudeness from volunteers and the manage said "we're desperate for volunteers and they can be hard to police".........

Our shop, most of the time, only had one paid member of staff each day and that person would be behind the scenes sorting donations as opposed to being on the shop floor and TBH I think that's a false economy for the charities.

Contains_Mild_Peril

Many charity shops can't really afford to pay more than one member of staff, but most of the volunteers I've dealt with have been pleasant. The last time a member of staff in a charity shop was rude to me, which was many years ago, she was the manager! Sadly the charity shop closed down after only a few months, I suspect because of her attitude, which was a shame because I got some great bargains there and the other staff I met were all lovely.

My local community centre ran a 2-day charity shop in aid of their minibus fund. Being short of money, I went towards the end of the second day for clearance bargains and I wasn't disappointed: I got a pair of Karen Walker sunglasses for 20p (about 1% of the price of similar ones on eBay)! Other bargains included a pair of vintage curtains and a Lloyd Loom type storage footstool for £1 each, and about an hour before closing time, one of the clothes stalls did a fill-a-bag-for-£1 deal, so I got a big carrier-bagful of clothes, labels including Gerry Weber, Marks & Spencer (one pair of trousers still had £29.50 price tag attached), Dorothy Perkins, Reebok and Puma.

humblepii

Hello everyone! I've had an insanely busy few weeks but back to business as usual this weekend - have loved catching up with all your bargains :j (and boo to rude staff :eek:)

I took a couple of small bags to my fave CS yesterday and managed to bring out a few bargains for myself:
Perfectly worn in Converse hi tops £3.50 (RRP £48)
An as-new skirt by Minkpink £3 (RRP £60)
J Crew denim shorts £2.50 (RRP £79.50)

Pleased with that and change from a tenner!

Blether

Was in Aberdeen for the weekend. Went round the charity shops but only got a book in one. Prices are getting even higher. £6 for a worn George top, £12 for a Sainsbury new top which still had their £12 price tag on it and a second hand Jaegar leather bag for £120 and there are loads on ebay a lot cheaper and new ones for a similar price. I am a regular visitor to Aberdeen and used to get some good buys but lately the prices are getting outrageous. The charity shops used to be busy but not now. Don't know how some of them cover their overheads. Was told that Doc Martin were trying to open a shop in Aberdeen but were outbid by a charity shop. That says it all when they have more money to spend than regular shops.

Slowdown

I have only just seen this thread so I'm about to cheat and post for the last two weeks.
I was in Edinburgh last weekend and was at a loose end for a while so wandered around Stockbridge, a rather smart area. They have the most amazing charity shops, so we'll organised and chock full of goodies. There is even a dedicated music shop for oxfam. I bought a DVD, two books and a cd for DH and DS2 Christmas presents. DH is a big second hand fan so he'll be pleased.
On Saturday I bought two new pairs of wooly socks from my local charity shop for a £1. Very pleased I was
Happy bargain hunting
Slowdown

debtmess

Last Friday managed to get DS a lightening McQueen tshirt for £1.50 still had the disney label

A lovely debenhams butterfly cardigan for baby girl and a dvd for my little brother.

We have a fantastic charity shop local to me, when I have a hour or so spare I take the baby for a walk, there is another a a few mins up but the one I prefer the ladies in there are lovely. A month or so ago I was up there and they had just had some donations in, as one of them was going through the stuff I was paying, having the baby with me she was showing me the items as they were sorted :beer: managed to get some sheets and blankets for dd's cot and some lovely fluffy pram shoes

lizifee

I absolutely love charity shopping, the best spot in Manchester is East Didsbury, there is about seven charity chops all clustered together and I have got some really great bargains there - my latest is a mustard coat, which can be smart or casual and it only cost me £3. I love it!