In 2017, 271 charity shops on our highstreet closed. I spoke to an assistant manager at Scope on Beckenham High street to see what it is like working in a charity shop and to find out whether they are feeling the effects of this decline.
Scope is a charity that supports people with disabilities, their families and carers. It is one of the staple high street charities. The charity shop itself runs tombolas and raffles, as well as selling products. The assistant manager explained to me that the shop staff feel like “one big family”. Volunteers are welcome to work for the whole day or even just an hour, whatever time they can spare. The assistant manager felt that working in Scope can help volunteers with confidence, customer service skills, work experience and job applications. It seemed that Scope is helping the community not only in what it stands for in supporting those with disabilities but also in the way it allows people of all ages to experience a workplace and give back to a charity.
In this charity shop, they feel the values of the charity draw people in just as much as the quality of their products. Customers know what the charity’s purpose upon entering the shop and are satisfied with the quality of the products inside. Many high-end items pass through the shop, for example, an Armani jacket (which normally can be up to £3,900) was sold at a drastically cheaper price. Charity shops can also provide a unique retail experience compared to some of the high street chain shops. Scope believes that the image of charity shops has changed and improved in recent years and they are feeling the positive benefits of that. Scope does inspirational work and sells excellent stock and donations are always welcome.
Scope has a very diverse group of regular customers, and doesn’t fall into the stereotype of a shop for older adults. Scope is widely used by people from all walks of life. Young families often use the shop, as children grow out of clothes so quickly it can be very expensive to replenish these on a regular basis. Charity shops are a low-cost alternative to new children's clothes. Scope also has many collectors who are in search of valuable and unusual items, as Charity shops often house many hidden gems. Particularly coming up to Christmas, popularity increases as people have to buy many presents and charity shops provide the answer to Christmas on a budget. Scope also has many returning customers, and the assistant manager feels that some customers from lower-income backgrounds depend on their shop.
As the online market is growing, shops in the high street are struggling. However, this doesn’t seem to have affected Scope in recent years. The shop is in a “lucky” position as Beckenham is a busy town, they still receive lots of business and do not feel that online shopping is causing their charity shop to lose popularity. Despite this, Scope is soon to set up profiles on online platforms such as Facebook. They also hope to be able to sell products on eBay soon and believe that the internet could help them instead of hinder them.
Fast fashion has also been in the news lately, clearly, charity shops are better for the environment than a regular high street shop but they also produce little waste. Scope does not throw away any clothes, instead, their “rag” is collected and taken to a sorting facility. They are then shipped to developing countries to people who need clothes. Clothes that are discarded on a second sort are sent to a pound shop in Orpington. The only thing that is ever thrown away is some of the bric a brac section if the product is chipped or damaged. Most donations are put on the shop floor or put towards a good cause.
Charity shops are still valued on the high street and despite the general decline in charity shops nationally, Scope in Beckenham seems to be thriving and provides a vital service to the local community.
By Emilia Beveridge
