Charity shops
- Thread starter Dirtyhanz2
- Start date
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cyberknight
As long as I breathe, I attack.
- Location
- Land of confusion
all we get in these parts is old suits , granny dresses and furniture that needs fumigating
Petrichorwheels
Senior Member
Petrichorwheels
Senior Member
care to PM me (you maybe don't want to post to the web) the location of the manchester one?
I'm from those vague parts and get there occassionally (only occasionally I stress so unlikely to deprive you of anything)
Not sniffy about my offerings as they didn't even get to see them.
Put the binbag of goodies in the hopper thingie, they said. Then, Oh we can't take that, the bag's split.. (a tiny bit)
We can't take that cardboard box of stuff because it's open. It has to be taped shut!
Do you have any tape, then, please?
No..
Not even in a friendly tone of voice either.
Stuff you then, thought I.. You don't want me to contribute to your shop then?
I put my goodies back in the car, (including the slightly split binbag of decent clothing that I retrieved from the hopper) , and took it a few doors down to the DEBRA shop where they were more than happy to accept it.
Never been back to Barnardo's since. Their loss.
GeekDadZoid
Über Member
I am not worried about sharing, I don't go as often as I used too and most of you lot on here are 1/2 my size :-). Its the one in the City Centre on Picadilly Station Approach.
Andy in Germany
Guru
- Location
- Freiburg im Breisgau
Unfortunately I can't generally find clothes in my size in charity shops: I'm a bit below the German average, it seems. This is doubly annoying as I'm employed by one and would get 20% off. Also, in our main shop, with a warehouse the size of three tennis courts, do you think I can find a bog brush?
That said, I have found some nice furniture which various managers are keeping until I can arrange transport...
That said, I have found some nice furniture which various managers are keeping until I can arrange transport...
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Reynard
Guru
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
Ely is rather touristy, and the charity shops around here have definitely gone upmarket in recent years. Ergo bargains are few and far between. Books, CDs and DVDs still affordable, as are fabrics, but the rest... Forget it... I often see stuff that's more expensive than the shop it originally would have come from. I have had some good bargains over the years, though...
A Toggi fleece-lined gilet for £7 - I've had SO much wear out of it, a beautiful imari-patterned tyg, an 18 carat gold bracelet set with blue topaz for £1.99 (they didn't recognise the Italian hallmarks), some Victorian books on military history, Jane's Fighting Ships (1914 and 1918), an Indian silver sugar bowl for £3.99 and a Grand Prix yearbook from 1963 for £5 which had a surprise of prints of Mike Hawthorn, Stirling Moss and a couple of other noted drivers from the late 50s and early 60s hidden inside the dust jacket. I only found them when I peeled away the tape holding the dust jacket in place.
A Toggi fleece-lined gilet for £7 - I've had SO much wear out of it, a beautiful imari-patterned tyg, an 18 carat gold bracelet set with blue topaz for £1.99 (they didn't recognise the Italian hallmarks), some Victorian books on military history, Jane's Fighting Ships (1914 and 1918), an Indian silver sugar bowl for £3.99 and a Grand Prix yearbook from 1963 for £5 which had a surprise of prints of Mike Hawthorn, Stirling Moss and a couple of other noted drivers from the late 50s and early 60s hidden inside the dust jacket. I only found them when I peeled away the tape holding the dust jacket in place.
Roadrat77
Active Member
- Location
- Birmingham
I'm finding some of their prices are actually more expensive than the item brand new! I suppose they have to fund the six-figure salaries some of their CEOs earn somehow.
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Dogtrousers
Kilometre nibbler
That sounds a bit rude
Reynard
Guru
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
Andy in Germany
Guru
- Location
- Freiburg im Breisgau
Our boss drives a fairly old Fiesta, so I don't think he's getting six figures. I also wouldn't want to do his job.
Roadrat77
Active Member
- Location
- Birmingham
He needs to get a job running a charity in Britain..
Andy in Germany
Guru
- Location
- Freiburg im Breisgau
I don't know how the system works in the UK but it is surprisingly hard for charity shops to compete with "normal" shops. One area not recognised is that most high street shops have a very streamlined delivery system, whereas we have to deal with what we get, so our warehousing costs are higher: our shop is 2/3 warehouse and my bicycle storage area is the size of some bicycle shops, not including the piles of bikes I've got in a field which are gradually taken to pieces for sale as scrap.
We are fortunate because we are funded to some extent to help vulnerable adults, otherwise the organisation couldn't afford occupational therapists, but still we have to operate like a business with all the challenges and risk that entails, and our manager is constantly looking for opportunities and starting new departments; in our case we are half owned by the county so the "board" is basically the 22 mayors of each town.
That people don't realise is that the manager is the one who makes sure people like me can focus on our clients to help them. Without him running about dealing with politicians, finding business opportunities and arranging leases and contracts, I couldn't do my job. We rely on him being good at what he does, so he has to be paid accordingly.
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