The Charity Shop Chat

In this episode of Charity Shop Chat, Charlotte Greenwood and Mimi Cartwright are joined by author and journalist Tansy Hoskins to look at the world of charity shops from a different perspective.Tansy’s new book, Charity Shop World, explores charity shops, consumption, community and what really happens to the things we no longer want. She spent four years researching it, including 16 months sorting donations on the shop floor of a London charity shop.Tansy’s book Charity Shop World is out now. You can find her at tansyhoskins.org and on social media as Tansy Hoskins.

Secondhand used to be whispered about. Now it’s worn proudly, shared loudly and styled boldly. In this episode, Charlotte and Mimi are joined by Sara, the vintage-hunting, thrift-hauling force of nature behind Rebel Rags Vintage, to talk about how pre-loved fashion has become about identity, confidence and community.Sarah shares how a love of getting dressed turned into a following, why charity shops are the “picky bits” buffet of the high street, and how affordable experimenting helps people rediscover their style. We also dig into what charity retail can learn from the influencer world, plus a rapid fire round, what everyone is manifesting to find in a charity shop!

In this episode of The Charity Shop Chat, Mimi and Charlotte are joined by Billy Farrell, Director of Income Generation at Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland, for a conversation about what happens when charity retail starts thinking a little differently.Billy tells us how his team signed up 18,000 customers to their loyalty scheme in just nine months, discovering that half of them were also donating stock. With £5 vouchers driving customers back into shops, the scheme is giving the charity a whole new way to understand its customers, build relationships and turn shoppers into supporters.But that's just the beginning. We get into charity shops in the metaverse, how to optimise sales data, experimenting with AI, creating new products, finding funding for innovation and, importantly, what happens when a supposedly brilliant idea just doesn't work.Billy makes the case for being curious, trying things, failing quickly and looking outside the charity sector for inspiration.Because the future of charity retail might involve a loyalty card, a metaverse shop... or something we haven't even thought of yet.

In this episode, visual merchandising expert Kat Maclennan shares practical ways to increase sales through better layouts, stronger stock presentation, improved customer flow and smarter use of existing fixtures, often with little or no spend. From common VM mistakes to budget-friendly success stories and myth busting advice, this episode is packed with ideas you can put into practice straight away.

Who's going to run tomorrow's charity shops?The job market is getting tougher, volunteers are harder to find, and succession planning is becoming a priority for more charities.Charlotte Greenwood and special guest host Hannah Weet from the Charity Retail Association are joined by Lesley Kennedy (RSPCA Derby & District) and Marie Egerton (St Rocco's Hospice) to discuss creative recruitment, attracting the right people, developing future leaders and building stronger retail teams.Packed with practical ideas and real life examples, this episode is full of inspiration for any charity retailer looking to strengthen their people strategy.