I spent £38 & bagged £1.9k of designer goodies including a YSL jacket at the charity shop – now I’ll share my top tips
IT’S fair to say that charity shops have had something of a revival over the past few years, as youngsters caught on that there’s some jaw-dropping deals to be had if you’re willing to have a good rummage.
What’s more, more of us than ever are using second-hand shopping sites like eBay, Vinted and Depop to bag absolute bargains.
It comes as eBay saw a six per cent increase in website traffic over July 2023, as well as a 7.3 per cent surge in app downloads within the last month – according to stats from Alt Index.
And one savvy shopper, Jen Graham, has shared her tips for top-tier thrifting, sharing how she managed to bag a whopping £1.9k of designer goodies for just £38.
The 38-year-old has racked up a combined 140k followers on her TikTok and Instagram accounts, both with the handle @charityshopgirlcsg, where she shares the luxe pieces she’s scavenged from thrift stores.
The Cheshire-based influencer began posting content after being made redundant during Covid, when her 13-year-old daughter suggested she should start filming her frequent second-hand clothing hauls.
“I started charity shopping because I always wanted to dress a little bit differently,” Jen explains.
“I thought I could do that by shopping second hand because every item was individual and unique.”
According to Jen, her videos have seen a recent surge in popularity as people battle with the cost-of-living crisis, and seek out cheap ways to keep looking chic on a budget.
“Everyone is worrying about money and trying to cut costs, but still want to look nice,” she explains.
“I also think the stigma has been removed and people feel ok to wear something that’s second hand.”
The shopping whizz says that resale sites like eBay and Depop are just as good as physical stores, letting you bag deals “from the comfort of your own home”.
And in her years of thrifting, the cash-saving whizz has managed to bag some absolutely eye-watering savings.
“I wanted a Ralph Lauren bag,” she says, “which was £287, and I got it for £90, brand new in the dust bag on Vinted.
“I’m also going to Goodwood and I bought the most beautiful Jaeger pink shift dress for £8. It came fully steamed, it was brand new. That would have been around £80.”
The penny-pinching influencer also recently grabbed a Yves Saint Lauren blazer for just £20 – despite the fact it would have cost around £1k when it originally sold in the 1990s.
“I found it wedged in the t-shirts section, so It wasn’t even with the blazers. I always look through every single item in a charity shop because they’re not always organised. You do have to have a good rummage.”
Astonishingly, Jen reckons that for every ten charity shops you visit, if you hunt hard enough, there’ll be a designer buy in at least eight of them.
And after years of finding the best deals, she’s come up with some foolproof ways to make the thrifting process as hassle-free as possible.
Her first tip is that “you’ve got to be constantly on these apps to get a good deal”, because the good stuff goes immediately.
“You’ve got to be either constantly rummaging in the shops or having a look online, especially if you’re looking for a specific item.”
With this in mind, you want to plan when you browse effectively to make sure that competition is as little as possible.
“Searching at lunch time or the middle of the day is a great tip because not a lot of people are going to be on the site bidding. They’re good times to get a little bargain,” she adds.
Another canny trick is to consider mistakes people make when listing their products, so you can find mislisted items that less-informed shoppers might miss.
“Sometimes people can spell ‘Gucci’ as ‘Ducci’,” Jen explains, “then it wouldn’t sell and you wouldn’t find that by searching ‘Gucci’.”
The frugal fashionista also recommends that you’re better off visiting charity shops in smaller towns rather than bigger cities, “because they’re easier for parking” and therefore people are more likely to donate.
In towns, “people won’t take donations there because they don’t want to carry the bags. I know that being in and out of shops myself. People will ignore the ones in town centres because they want to be lugging it around.”
And if you’re looking for the best place to thrift in the UK, Jen recommends Leamington Spa in Warwickshire.
“Leamington is good for every single age, even from teens right up to 70 and 80 years old. You will find something for everyone,” she gushes.
“If you go there, I guarantee you won’t be disappointed.”
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