Resale apps and fast fashion endanger charity shops

Some people take drugs. Others go bungee jumping. I get my highs from scoring charity shop bargains. Ever since I was a teenager in Edinburgh, mooching around Stockbridge for secondhand gear that wouldn't bust my allowance, one of my favourite hobbies has been to dive into the rails and hunt for diamonds in the rough.

- Iona Bain

Sadly, the diamonds are becoming scarcer, the rough becoming way rougher. That’s because charity shops are struggling. Cancer Research UK recently announced it would be shutting hundreds of shops; Scope has already closed more than 50 branches this year. Other charities, such as British Heart Foundation, Oxfam and Barnardo's, say sales are sluggish.

This is not just because of rising costs and higher employer national insurance. Both the quality and quantity of donations are in freefall — and responsible for this are two main culprits.

One is fast fashion, made in industrial volumes to such poor standards that charity shops can’t sell it, even to the so-called “rag trade”.