Charity shop donations dry up

By: Joe Ayling - 15 January 2010 11:46

Whilst the UK recession has resulted in booming demand for second hand clothes and charity shops, supply appears to be waining.

Global charity Oxfam reports this week that donations to its shops over the last 12 months have decreased by 15%.

Donations statistics have long been a barometer of retail trends in the UK, Oxfam notes, suggesting that the recession is far from over despite recent optimism over retail sales figures.

Oxfam’s director of trading David McCullough said: "This is a crucial moment for us. Over the last eighteen months, people have been buying less, replacing less and therefore donating less to Oxfam. Now sales are apparently on the increase, we can only wait to see if this is reflected by an increase in donations to our shops."

More than 80% of Oxfam’s total income from its 700 shops comes from donations from the public of clothes, books, music, homewares and other goods.

Donations have steadily fallen since the original UK credit crunch in 2008, when donations fell by 12%.