Most charity shops are proud of their low prices, and rightly so. Affordable second-hand goods are part of what charity retail is for. But there is a difference between a fair bargain and an item that goes out of the door for far less than it is worth.
Small gaps add up
Imagine a shop that underprices one item in ten by an average of £3. If that shop prices 1,500 items a week, that’s 150 items and £450 a week. Over a year, that is more than £23,000 for one shop. These figures are only an illustration, but the principle holds: small, frequent gaps make a big difference.
The valuable ones hurt most
The biggest losses come from the rare items that are worth far more than they look: a piece of studio pottery, a designer coat, a first edition. When these sell for a few pounds, the charity loses more than money. The bargain hunters who snap them up often resell them online at full value.
Overpricing costs too
Pricing too high is just as harmful. Items that sit on the rail take up space that could hold stock that sells, and many are eventually sold to rag merchants for pennies. A price that is too high often ends up raising less than a fair one would have.
Why it happens
None of this is the volunteers’ fault. Pricing well needs knowledge of thousands of brands, makers and trends, and time to research, which no busy shop has. So each volunteer does their best, and prices vary from person to person and shop to shop.
What consistent pricing looks like
The charities that price best have three things:
- Evidence. Prices are based on what items actually sell for.
- Clear rules. Head office sets how prices are adjusted for each shop and category.
- A way to catch the special items. Valuable or possibly fake goods get a second look.
Where PricedRight fits
PricedRight gives every volunteer the evidence, applies head office’s rules automatically, and flags the items that deserve an expert’s eye. Head office can also see where volunteers change the suggested price, so rules can improve over time.