During the Christmas period, we teamed up with The Charity Shop Gift Card to gather public opinions on charity shopping, focusing on secondhand gifting. It was estimated that £2bn was expected to be spent on secondhand gifts in the UK in 2024, so we wanted to dive a little deeper into this trend.
We surveyed 173 individuals, most of whom were enthusiastic charity shoppers, using flyers distributed in Basildon and Leigh-on-Sea, as well as sharing the survey on our social media. Participants also had the chance to win a £40 Charity Shop Gift Card for completing the survey.
We received valuable feedback that we thought lots of you would be interested in hearing. Here are some key insights:
64.5% of respondents indicated that their last purchase from a charity shop discouraged them from buying a new item, while an additional 22.7% thought it probably did.
A remarkable 87.2% of participants have purchased items from charity shops as gifts in the past, and an impressive 97.1% expressed that they would be happy to receive a secondhand gift.
Another encouraging statistic appeared when we asked about purchasing a new outfit for an upcoming event: only 13.9% of people stated they would first consider the high street or fast fashion websites. The majority indicated they would explore charity shops, online secondhand platforms, or borrow from friends/wear something they already owned.
We’re pleased that these findings seem to display a significant shift in consumer attitudes towards sustainable shopping practices, highlighting the growing acceptance and enthusiasm for shopping secondhand.
Or, if have any questions about how we conducted the survey, please feel free to reach out to hannah@charityretail.org.uk
