THRIFTY shoppers can get designer clothes and shoes at rock bottom prices if they look in the right places at charity shops.
You can get Vivienne Westwood T-shirts and Yeezy trainers for as little as £20, according to one expert. But these gems are easy to miss if you don’t know where they’re usually kept.
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That’s why The Sun spoke to British Heart Foundation shop manager Jo Webala for tips on how to sniff out the best bargains in stores.
Ms Webala manages a team of seven paid staff and 25 volunteers at the charity’s Manchester Piccadilly store.
She’s spent seven years looking after the store and its workers, putting out stock on the shop floor, serving customers and arranging shop windows to tempt customers in.
From revealing the exact times to go shopping for the best bits to when to look out for flash sales, here are her top four tips.
But because store layouts and the way shops are run can vary between chains and branches, you won’t be able to use Ms Webala’s tips in every instance.
It comes as shoppers are turning to cheaper ways to update their wardrobe due to a cost of living crunch.
Charity shops saw sales jump by nearly 7% between June and September last year according to research from the Charity Retail Association.
It said sales were driven by customers looking for more cost-effective ways of buying their clothes and essentials.
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Ms Webala herself has noticed shops have become busier.
“People shop with us for loads of different reasons,” she said.
“There’s been an increase [in shoppers] – and more so since Covid.“
If you want to put Ms Webala’s shopping tips to the test yourself, you can use BHF‘s store locator tool to find your nearest one.
Head for the cabinets
The best bargains can usually be found stored in the glass cabinets dotted around stores.
This is where high-value items are kept, so they can’t easily be taken.
“We get really good stock all the time – we had a bin bag full of Vivienne Westwood T-shirts which we sold for £20, but I reckon they were £80 or £90 full price,” Ms Webala said.
“We also got some expensive and limited edition trainers, from Nike, Adidas and Yeezy. Some were probably worth £450, and we sold them for £85.
“The glass cabinets are where we put amazing stock like this.”
Make sure to check behind the till – they’ll usually be cabinets there with expensive goods in which have been donated like Doc Martins, designer sunglasses and jewellery.
“Don’t be afraid to ask us to open the glass cabinets,” Ms Webala said.
Exactly when to shop
Bargain hunters will want to set their alarms if they want the best deals.
You’ll also want to head to your local store on specific days during the week.
“Mornings are best to pop in,” Ms Webala said.
“Mondays are when we reorganise the shop floor and get a big injection of stock in.
“Fridays are also big stock days before the busy weekends come – during the afternoon is a good time to go.”
When flash sales launch
It’s not only high street shops that have big sales – charity shops do too.
Ms Webala said that stores will often have end of season “flash sales”.
This is so stock can be shifted quickly to make way for the new season.
“Sometimes we get excess stock and we might decide to hold a Bank Holiday flash sale for customers,” she said.
Flash sales might happen off the cuff as well if a big delivery is made – so they are sometimes easy to miss.
That’s why shoppers should follow their local charity shop’s Instagram page.
“VIP lock in dates, new drops and flash sales will be advertised on Instagram – so stay close to your shop’s social media,” she said.
Location, location, location
If you’re wanting to bag yourself designer clothes that are barely a year old, your best bet is to head to shops near cities and universities.
Ms Webalan has worked in a number of different areas for BHF, and has noticed the quality of donations varies depending on your location.
She said international students will often donate “fantastic” clothing to shops because after they’ve graduated.
While you can get fashion companies in cities donating new clothes with tags still on them to local charity stores.
“You’ll get those on trend items, instead of people clearing out clothes that are 10 years old,” she said.
Here’s how to bag yellow sticker bargains at big supermarkets.
And here are 10 secrets big shops don’t want customers to know about.
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