Charity shops across the UK are increasingly turning to online platforms in a bid to keep pace with the meteoric rise of second-hand fashion apps such as Vinted and Depop, as in-store sales come under pressure from rising costs and shifting consumer habits.
New analysis from the Charity Retail Association (CRA) reveals that while physical shop income declined throughout 2024, online sales rose by more than 10 per cent in every quarter. As a result, three-quarters of charity retailers now sell online — a significant shift for a sector long reliant on bricks-and-mortar presence.
“There’s no question these are tough times for charity retailers,” said Robin Osterley, chief executive of the CRA. “The increase in the national living wage, which we support, is going to be painful, and the rise in the national insurance contributions threshold is going to hurt quite substantially.”
He cited a worrying decline in donation quality, attributing it in part to consumers now sorting their second-hand items between bags for online sale and bags for charity. “Where people used to keep a bag in their bedroom for the charity shop, now they might have two,” he said.
Many charities have responded by embracing the digital shift. The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has become the largest UK charity seller on eBay, with 2.5 million items sold and a following of nearly 330,000 users. It is also ramping up activity on Depop, with more than 23,000 followers, and sells specialist items such as defibrillators through its own online shop.
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