Charity Support

They have become a way of life and despite the voice of the critics, they form an essential part of the fabric of many towns and shopping thoroughfares . . . behold the rise of the Charity Shop.
Not that there is anything particularly new about the presence of charity shops in our high streets. Simply that there seem to be more an more of them.
And you will find them worldwide — in America and Canada they are likely to be known as thrift shops or in Australia as opportunity shops.  Yet whatever the name, the principle is the same — retail shops run by charitable organisations to raise money for the particular charity.
They sell mainly used goods and clothes donated by the public and are usually staffed by volunteers.  That keeps business costs low, and helped by legislation which through government keeps a cap on their business rates.
Yet in many areas critics complain that the sheer number of them stifles normal retail activity and presents unfair competition to regular shopkeepers.
However they've been around a long time, a shop supporting the blind is recorded from the late 19th century, although in this country the popularity began to take off during and after the 1939-45 war.
Nowadays they fill an important role in the retail pattern of shopping thoroughfares, and are a vital source of income for the charity they support.
Do they dominate our high streets? The Charity Retail Association which represents their interests reckon there are at least 9,000 charity shops around the country, staffed by more that 218,000 volunteers, and between them generating £300 million a year in profits for the charitable causes.
The big name charities run many of them but there are plenty of smaller ones, like this one in Romsey, Hampshire, run by the local cancer support organisation, Jane Scarth House and others in most towns which are run by purely local organisations.

They may not generate the same crowds of shoppers as the big retail stores, and their clientele is often more selective. Yet they hold a certain attraction, and you can usually count on a bargain!