Lightbulb moment re charity shop prices!

DawnW

theoretica wrote: »

The most sensible charity shop pricing I have seen had a system of coloured stickers marking the week stuff was put out - the first week it was full price (at oxfamish levels) then it fell every week (eg, everything with a blue sticker 50% off) until it at the 4 paperbacks for £1 level. The good stuff sold in the first couple of weeks and didn't all get swept up by dealers to put on ebay, but there was also cheap stuff if you just wanted a book or shirt. It also worked well to get people coming back to see what the new bargains were!

They use a system much like this at the French brocantes. For the first couple of weeks or so, a higher price is specified. After this time, if not sold, the price reduces. Makes much more sense than charity shops sending things to landfill if they don't sell within a given period!

GreyQueen

:eek: Blimey, ChocClare, my flatmate used to have one of those robes. We just wore the old things and wore them up. If we'd've had a functioning crystal ball, we'd have bought up all that stuff and stashed it for 30 years and been sitting pretty now, eh?

Nice to "see" you again, btw, I still have and use your chicken recipes, nomnomnom.

I went to the c.s. and people have managed to resist parting with £3 for a squatty little Kilner with a perished seal. Quelle surprise.

thriftwizard, what's the going rate for original Monty Don crystal drop and velvet bow earrings, as worn in the eighties? Haven't got any, just curious. And to think the there are people who don't know he was once the pushiest purveyor of costume jools in Old Lunnon Town........

thriftwizard

thriftwizard, what's the going rate for original Monty Don crystal drop and velvet bow earrings, as worn in the eighties?

Haven't a clue, I'm afraid, GQ! I don't normally "do" clothing, never mind accessories & jewellery, but stick to textiles, haberdashery & associated tools. I've just bought some clothing etc. in for the festival, as 5 days worth of vintage habby isn't easy to come by!

ETA: though I'd happily make an exception for a dressing gown like that, ChocClare - that's gorgeous!

ChocClare

Yes, I think me and DD would fight over it if I could find such a thing these days. Sadly, it literally rotted apart- I think it was for floating round genteely in rather than living and sleeping in.

Nice to see you too, GQ - I do still lurk occasionally but got put off posting a while ago (?) when it got to the point where a certain poster only had to write two words and I'd be so wound up I had to go and lie down. Looks like she's bu@@ered off for a while so all to the good!

kezlou

I have to say I have, never haggled in a charity shop, I, just think its rude. Oh and the one time I did say something I was instantly insulted. So now I just keep my trap shut.

I do enjoy looking round charity shops I like to look for, little trinkets and, books. I buy most of my clothes from them and always donate rags in a separate bag.

Austin_Allegro

hobbitfancier wrote: »

I envy those days! A lot of American vintage bloggers I follow seem to find 1930s treasures in thrift stores. I live in Ireland and haven't seen anything pre 1970s.

Yes! There's one blogger I read who drives out to small towns in New England and picks up amazingly cheap,good clothes at thrift (charity) shops. New England is known for its well dressed, old-money people. You just don't get that in the UK any more; anything half decent goes on Ebay.

I do think books are waaaay overpriced in charity shops. A colleague's wife works in a well known charity shop and wanted to sell their overstocks of paperbacks for 10p. She was told she had to throw them away instead, because if she sold them too cheap it would get people used to low prices! That's criminal, the sort of attitude that ultimately leads to butter mountains and starvation.

Here in Hungary we only have one or two charity shops. They just don't have the concept here. My wife was going to give some clothes away to a new charity shop that opened in town. My mother in law was round and we had to explain the concept to her. She looked very suspicious, took the clothes from us and said 'I'll hang on to these, they may come in useful.':rotfl:

thriftwizard

Austin Allegro, I'm fascinated to hear about CSs/thrift stores - and also car boot sales, brocantes etc. - in other countries. Whether they have them, and how they are "evolving" if indeed they are. Our CSs are undoubtedly turning into secondhand high street emporiums, run along big business lines; I sometimes wonder whether they are actually making any more money in real terms (i.e. after paying rents, salaries, accountants, advertising campaigns etc.) than they were before they "professionalised" themselves? (That's a genuine query, by the way!)

All the CSs I knew of in Spain seem to have closed their doors, but that's only a small area of Spain and they were all run by ex-pats (albeit often supported by locals) in support of animal charities; I don't know what happens elsewhere. But car boot sales are big now; I know of one trader who goes over every month for a specific one in Murcia, brings his trophies back & flogs them off at a big one here for ten times what he paid over there. And others who make regular trips to France for the same reasons. Which is rather sad when so much of our own heritage is just sent off for pulping, scrapping or turning into chipboard!

duchy

In the US donations to thrift stores have been tax deductable for years so it's often the first thought when decluttering as there is "something in it" for the owner-without the hassle of ebay etc so probably the reason why the pickings in New England can be so good.

alfsmum

One of the 'themes' suggested for the Secret Santa at work last year was a Charity Shop one. As we fundraise for a different charity every year through cake sales, selling second hand books and so on, we thought buying from a CS with a £5 limit per person would be a win-win situation (as I suspect most of the Santa presents end up in the bin). This proved to be a non-starter as so many people were horrified at the idea of entering a CS let alone buying from one!!!

starsandmoon

Ive just come back from a holiday in Majorca and found a charity shop in one of the back streets in Santa Ponsa! It was a Red Cross one and everything was one euro. They had books in all languages, clothes, furniture etc. We bought books and a lilo for my DD as the lilos were 10 euros in the shops.

I noticed as well whilst I was in Spain that they dont have the materialistic attitude I see in England. The only people wearing "designer" cloths were English people. Other Europeans didnt or if they did they didnt have logos all over them.