The Manager of the Save the Children shop in Midgate Peterborough Anne Irons talks to the BBC’s Heather Noble and reports that the recession may have affected the quantity of goods coming into the shop.
This interview was broadcast at 07:35 on Wednesday 26th May 2010 in the Peterborough Breakfast Show on BBC Radio Cambridgeshire hosted by Andy Gall.
ANDY: A Peterborough charity shop is having a stock crisis. Save The Children says the donations have significantly dropped in the last year. Now they’re urgently appealing for people to keep them afloat, and our reporter Heather Noble went to meet shop manager Anne Ions. (TAPE)
HEATHER: How’s business been recently?
ANNE: Business has been slack and our major problem is that we never have enough stock to sell to the public. Maybe it’s the recession. Maybe people are not donating as much as they used to, they’re hanging on to it. We do have community service who do a doorstep drop and a collection every week. One of their problems is that their bags are often stolen before they can pick them up. Another thing is so many charities are now competing for stock that it’s difficult for them to find somewhere that hasn’t been done recently.
HEATHER: How long has this been the problem for you?
ANNE: Probably for about a year or so, since the recession kicked in. People tend to hold onto things rather than give them away. Another problem we have is the quality of donations. It’s very variable and the good quality stuff we can sell readily, but we often have to rag quite a lot of things, and throw things away.
HEATHER: We’re here in your stock room now. So I can see quite a few empty rails. Can you talk us through some of the stuff you’ve got, and what your particularly in need of. I can see a wedding dress over here.
ANNE: Yes. It’s quite an old wedding dress, but yes, we have had a local delivery this morning, and the bags have been sorted and they’re ready to be hung up, and it’s been quite good quality. But other weeks we’ve had to rag virtually everything. We are particularly short of the most profitable item, which is ladies’ wear. It makes up between forty five and fifty per cent of our takings. Another good seller is good quality bric-a-brac and books.
HEATHER: Do you have a huge demand there, since the recession, and have people come in looking for cheaper good quality clothes?
ANNE: Yes we do. People are looking for something that’s different. When I’ve got the goods the sales go up.
HEATHER: What’s going to happen if this situation doesn’t improve for you?
ANNE: If I can’t generate more stock, and the sales figures don’t improve, then eventually they’d have to think about closing it down.
HEATHER: But we’re not at that stage yet?
ANNE: We’re not at that stage yet, no. (LIVE)
ANDY: That’s Heather Noble who was at a Peterborough charity shop earlier, reporting on a stock crisis.
Save the Children
6 Midgate
Peterborough PE1 1TN
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