I think they developed banks because they thought they could make more money, and there was a gap in the market that the high street banks weren't filling. That's changed.
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Companies That You Expect to Disappear Soon
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Peter Sarf
Established Member
I got an M&S credit card for the convenience of being to pay it in M&S so at more convenient than just banking hours.
Useful as I then had one on Mastercard and one on Visa.
Now I cannot even pay my credit card over the counter at HSBC.
Long gone are the days of these supermarket banks being better then high street banks !.
I got an M&S credit card because it effectibely gave me 1% off spend in M&S, and a whacking great 0% ‘loan’ from opening for over 2 years which I rapidly reinvested at 5% and made several hundred quid profit from a few clicks. However now that loan has been repaid, the card is in several pieces.
I can’t understand why you would do that - it’s so inconvenient compared to direct debit or online / phone. I’ve not paid a card balance over the counter for about 30 years.
Back on thread, my Sainsburys, M&S, and now Virgin credit cards x2 have all led to me having letters confirming changed banking arrangeemnts.
When retail banking was profitable -especially since a lot of the biggest costs were for things the supermarkets were doing anyway. Other than banks, the post office (and ironically considering what forum this is) and BR (which was out of the picture by then) -who else had a nationwide network of customer-facing outlets geared up to handling and moving large amounts of cash every day? I would imagine that the likes of Tesco, Sainsbury’s and M&S had capitalisation in a similar range to the smaller retail banks and without the books of historic debt that ended up crippling many of those.
Not a company I expect to disappear but the British Heart Foundation is closing 150 shops.
www.bbc.co.uk
No mention of the sheer numbers of charity shops on high streets though.
British Heart Foundation plans to close 150 charity shops
The charity says it is facing "an exceptionally challenging trading environment".
www.bbc.co.uk
duffield
Established Member
I've bought loads of stuff from them recently in random places, they seem to be everywhere.Not a company I expect to disappear but the British Heart Foundation is closing 150 shops.
No mention of the sheer numbers of charity shops on high streets though.
British Heart Foundation plans to close 150 charity shops
The charity says it is facing "an exceptionally challenging trading environment".
This is 150 out of 640, so a pretty big chunk. Going to leave quite a few gaps in some high streets.
I also see that their chief executive just got a 14% pay rise. I'm sure they are so much worth it, while the hundred of employees facing redundancy are obviously dispensable. /s
Actually that pay rise is fairly typical of how things work these days. Massive rises for those at the top when times are good. Massive rises when times are bad. It's sickening, and I think I'll be steering my money to other charity shops in future. I have been trying to use smaller more localised ones recently.
This is a real shame.Not a company I expect to disappear but the British Heart Foundation is closing 150 shops.
No mention of the sheer numbers of charity shops on high streets though.
British Heart Foundation plans to close 150 charity shops
The charity says it is facing "an exceptionally challenging trading environment".
I've bought from them a number of times when I've moved into a new house and not had the cash for furniture, and it was always nice supporting a good cause in the process. I hope the closures won't affect the furniture shops they run (though goes without saying that any closures are bad news).
They have their own eBay shop, hopefully that won't disappear.
I bought a small wardrobe with some drawers underneath years ago, it was an impulse buy as I was passing and had a nosey in. It was near enough brand new and they said they would deliver for a nominal fee. I still have it, and it doesn't seem to have aged.
H F Stephens
Member
place.
It’s really not, and the presence of charities in the general retail market is neither equitable nor sustainable.
There’s a place for charity shops, of course, benefiting all parties, but ‘high street regeneration’ is unlikely to be part of that.
It’s really not, and the presence of charities in the general retail market is neither equitable nor sustainable.
There’s a place for charity shops, of course, benefiting all parties, but ‘high street regeneration’ is unlikely to be part of that.
STINT47
Member
With the rise of buying online and the large number of charity shops on high Street I can see the number of shops decreasing over the coming years.
SuspectUsual
Established Member
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I think this is probably what you meant, but the issue is the rise of selling online that’s doing for the charity shops. Vinted, Depop etc have massively changed how people deal with stuff - mainly clothes - they don’t want anymore
On top of that, the charities themselves sell the best donations online. On one hand, it is good for the charity's income but it does mean there are less quality and interesting items in the shops.
Absolutely not! There are around 10 charity shops within walking distance of my house, and most of them often have to refuse donations simply because their back rooms are full of donations.
Charity shops are businesses that only make money for the charity when they make a profit. They also have to pay to dispose of things they can't sell.
duffield
Established Member
People were dumping a load of unsaleable crap on them which was costing them money rather than making them money. They've wised up a bit. Going back a few decades, people didn't have much stuff and there wasn't a load of cheap new stuff available on line, so they might pay for (e.g.) a chipped dinner set with bits missing, or some ripped clothing they could mend. They won't do that so much these days. I've had stuff rejected and when they pointed out why, I agreed. Also there are a lot of things with fleeting popularity which they get flooded with when the popularity fades, and they can only sell a few copies.
Personally I'm glad they've gone upmarket, I pay a bit more but get much nicer and more interesting things from them that I used to. And there's still plenty of bargains.
I am not sure future generations are going to think of buying something second hand from a charity shop that might or might not have a little damage (but still be usable, or repairable) as they're more used to ordering something from Temu that's 'brand new' (even if it falls to bits in no time).
We are seeing more pushes, especially from the EU, to make products more repairable and extend product lives - and because of increasing prices people are now keeping things like smartphones or laptops for longer - but I do think a lot of people today have no desire to go to a charity shop and many may have NEVER been to one.
Some of the more aggressive charities when it comes to fund raising (the ones that will gladly knock on your door or guilt-trip people into giving large donations on a regular direct debit, with calls within weeks to up the payments and guilt-trip you even more) might have also resulted in people actively boycotting some charities entirely.
SuspectUsual
Established Member
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I think the second hand market has just become more nuanced - yes, the market for second hand bric-a-brac is probably weaker because new products are relatively inexpensive, but equally the market for second hand clothes has never been stronger - the issue is that the charity shops are seeing less of it than in the past
And re your last point about active boycotting of over aggressive charities - absolutely, but not in my case for the same reason. My partner and I have spent a lot of time over the last year helping her parents administer the estate of her great aunt. Two large, well-known charities got a third each of the estate, probably around £130k each. One of them was perfectly easy to deal with, the other was aggressive and unreasonable in the extreme and we will never go near them again
Charities are accepting, or even buying up, Amazon returns which fills the shelves with utter rubbish with packaging in Chinese. Neither the staff or customers know what it is. I'd sooner have some pre-loved donated bric-a-brac, even if it imperfect.
The second hand bric-a-brac market has simply collapsed. Stuff that would previously have sold at auction like china & glassware is now almost impossible to get rid of, as my parents' generation clear down and my (50ish) and my childrens' generations simply don't want stuff like that any more.
Peter Sarf
Established Member
I wonder how important a cutlery set, plates and cookware are to a generation that relies more and more on cooked food delivered. I know of a family that sit at the TV eating their Pizza straight from the box, holding the crust. They do not even need a table and dining chairs !.
I wonder what that is doing to the viability of manufacturers of the aforementioned household items and also the second hand suppliers ?.
Afterthought - they do not even need the means to wash up. In fact I wonder how much Kitchen manufacturers and suppliers are at risk from the change into more people just needing a fridge for booze and leftovers and a microwave to re-heat leftovers !.
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I'm not sure how much it's got to do with delivered cooked food, and how much to do with how we serve food more generally. The idea of "best" china is no longer commonplace, as casual dining crockery is easy to get at supermarkets or Ikea, and is far from expensive.
At the same time, the sort of stuff my grandparents had (a lovely china handled set of cake forks with matching plates, from the mid 1930s, for example) is just not interesting now. If auctioneers can't shift it, then nor will charity shops (and lets be honest, what the auctioneers can't shift, usually heads that way).
duffield
Established Member
My local charity shop did actually accept my surplus glass and chinaware, but they made sure it was high quality, complete sets and in absolutely perfect condition first. As you imply though, I'm still not sure who they thought would buy it!
It was a bit sad, really, it was stuff my late parents had given to me for "entertaining guests", which just sat unused for thirty-five years before I bit the bullet and disposed of it. It's not just the younger generations, I'm in my 60's and never really wanted or needed anything like that.
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I agree generally; however in St Albans there is a once-a-month ‘Antique and Vintage’ market (aka the ‘tat’ market) most of which is bric a brac. I’ve spoken to a couple of the sellers who are selling the sort of stuff I can’t imagine anyone wants (a decanter and set of port glasses anyone?) and they do sell it.
To be fair I was doing that nearly 40 years ago. Not very often, but it isnt a new thing, and is very common (as in a usual activity)
Yep. Signs either stating no donations or ‘we are only accepting x’.
The income Cancer Research gets from my donations has dwindled from a couple of hundred quids worth a year (according to the annual statements they send me) to nothing as a result.
Peter Sarf
Established Member
Yes, at 60, I ended up with things from my Mother that were handed down from her Mother. Including a set of cutlery in a display box. My mothers two sets of crockery (one best and one general user) bot seconds tbh. My better half now has two sets of best (and does not look after them !). Plus ordinary crockery mainly from IKEA with a few odd older bits that really need to have an accident so we can stack the rest up more easily !.
I have not bit the bullet yet.
My Mother bought crockery from a shop called Reeves & Sons in Rochester. She used to go back fairly regularly to see what else had arrived. American tourists used to go there. It was an Aladdins cave of all things China. Gone now (or maybe moved ?).
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The more pe
The more people eat out or have food delivered then the less need they have for cutlery and crockery I suppose. Critically they will not be wearing it out so quickly !. Not enough wear and tear !.
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Peter Sarf
Established Member
Lets face it a wall covered by a large screen TV is more likely nowadays than a display cabinet containing ones best china etc.
Every man and their dog seem to reckon they're the next Trotters Independent Traders these days for some reason, so the casual charity shop customer has already been beaten to anything of value by the 'resellers' (or in some casses probably even the staff!) - same at the car boot sale they're literally camping out waiting for sellers to open their car boots!
Talking of TVs even those are becoming 'disposable' these days - you can just walk into a supermarket these days and put a 55" or whatever in your trolley for around £250!
When my Dad died a year and a bit ago my Mum started a clearout and tried charity shops, Gumtree, car boots but in the end got bored of it all and these days almost has a loyalty card for the tip
Talking of TVs even those are becoming 'disposable' these days - you can just walk into a supermarket these days and put a 55" or whatever in your trolley for around £250!
When my Dad died a year and a bit ago my Mum started a clearout and tried charity shops, Gumtree, car boots but in the end got bored of it all and these days almost has a loyalty card for the tip