Designs on bargains in trawl of charity shops
THE cost of living is soaring and it’s set to continue to skyrocket throughout the year. For many of us, it will mean looking at where we can make some cutbacks.
Charity shops and thrifting have seen a huge rise in the past 12 months, with a 7% increase in income per charity shop reported since before the pandemic.
Recently, our sister website Wales Online reported how a mum saves £250 a month with her designer fashion charity shop and app hack, so I took a trip around Swansea’s charity shops to see what they had on offer and I couldn’t quite believe some of the things I found.
Cancer Research UK
The Cancer Research UK superstore is the largest charity shop in Swansea and the 29th in the UK with other branches open in Cardiff and Newport.
Almost everything in this store is £3 or less. Electronics and furniture are priced individually with sizes ranging from six to 22 and XS to XXL.
The store certainly lived up to its reputation as the biggest charity shop in the city; it was filled to the brim with bargains. When I visited, my best find was an XL men’s Nike activewear top, priced at £3.
Anyone needing to furnish a home quickly would be able to find nearly everything they would need here.
This store had a wide selection of sofas, armchairs, tables and chairs. The branch also stocked brand new towels, pillows, duvets and linen. In the window was my favourite of the furniture; a two-seater sofa for just £150.
Shoe lovers definitely need to visit this charity shop. There were literally hundreds of pairs ranging from ballet flats to trainers to high heels. For me, the best were a pair of basically new River Island heels, ideal for special occasions.
British Red Cross
The next stop on my bargain hunt was the British Red Cross shop in Oxford Street. It was one of the more expensive charity shops, but it offered a variety of clothes, bric-a-brac furniture, along with records, CDS and DVDS, with sizes ranging from six to 22 and XS to XXL.
The items in this shop are all priced individually, but the brands continued to come, with a grey Calvin Klein quarter zip sweatshirt for £10. They also had a navy blue Nike quarter zip sweatshirt for £8.
British Red Cross also has a partnership with high street giant, Zara. This means you can often find brand new, with tags on, Zara garments for a fraction of what they would have cost in store. My favourite find was a pair of white Zara boots at just £7.
YMCA
YMCA Oxford Street was the next charity shop I visited.
This shop was by far the cheapest of the lot, with most items costing just £1 and with sizes ranging from six to 20 and XS to XXL.
They had the usual assortment of clothes, bric-a-brac, records, CDS and DVDS. In here, I was able to find an XL Fred Perry polo, costing just £1, as well as an M Hugo Boss T-shirt, also costing a mere £1.
There was also a full Mcdonald’s uniform in this store, £1 each for the top and pants.
British Heart Foundation
British Heart Foundation in Oxford Street was next on my list and was without a doubt the priciest shop of them all. It stocked a mix of pre-loved and new clothes, shoes, jewellery, books, CDS and toys, with sizes ranging from four to 22 and XS to XL.
It also had the best brands. Here I found a pair of Kurt Geiger Carvela ballet flats for just £6.99. I also spotted a pair of Marc Jacobs shoes for £8.99. In the glass cabinet were some Vans, priced at £34.99. The same style, brand new on the Vans website, retail at £100, meaning there had been a 65% reduction on these.
Barnardo’s
Barnardo’s, in Fforestfach, was my last stop. They also stocked a mix of pre-loved and new clothes, shoes, jewellery, books, CDS and toys, with sizes ranging from four to 22 and XS to XL. We visited the store when it first opened earlier this year. This time, we were still able to find some bargains. A Helly Hansen jacket normally sells for around £100 on its website, but it cost just £6.50 here. It also had a “Brand new Designer Label” section, containing Jack Wills and French Connection. One French Connection dress was priced at £10.
I couldn’t leave without snapping a pic of a Primark midi dress, which is right on trend for this summer. The size eight garment cost just £6, a fraction of what it would cost in store.