What Used to Be Donatable is Now eBay-able

U.K. Charity Shops Hit Hard by Credit Crunch

Sales at second-hand shops in Britain have been hit "sharply hard" as the credit crunch has families choosing to make money out of their worn clothes and toys rather than donate them, according to a report in the Telegraph.

ATR has heard this same story form shops here in the U.S., as what used to be the fodder for charitable giving has become the kind of extra cash families need in the tough economic climate.

Citing figures from the long-running Ethical Consumerism Report, the Telegraph reports that charity shop giving fell by 18% in 2007 from 224 million pounds ($345 million) to 184 million pounds ($283 million), "and turnover is now nearly a third down over the last two years.'

"The eBay factor is really coming into play. Dropping off your stuff at a charity shop used to be the most efficient way of recycling, but now you can do it just as easily on eBay," said Barry Clavin of the Co-Operative Bank that published the findings.

The green aspect to this should not be overlooked. The report finds that most consumers are spending just as much money on "ethical" or "green" goods and services, "with Fairtrade food, energy-efficient boilers, and ethical investments all doing well."

The Co-op figures come on the same day that data from Hitwise, which monitors internet traffic, shows that U.K. searches for second hand goods have increased by 22 % between September 2007 and 2008.

Charity shops now face severe competition from the Internet, not only from eBay but also from websites such as freecyle.org, which allows people with local areas to swap goods, by passing them on to others.

The Association of Charity Shops dismissed the findings, insisting that sales and profits at charity shops were holding up very well.

Lekha Klouda, the Association's director, said: "The current economic situation is definitely a worry, with fewer people on the high street, but donations to shops have done well over the last year."