Mind shops see best ever month in charity’s retail history
Melanie May | 25 May 2021 | News
Mind’s 160 charity shops across England and Wales have raised £1.5m in the first month since reopening their doors to customers – the best month ever in Mind’s retail history.
Mind is now calling for further support from the public, with a need for more volunteers to help sort, price and sell donations.
Like other charities forced to close shops during the pandemic, Mind is predicting significant loss of retail generated income since the first lockdown – £13m in its case. At the same time it has seen a huge increase in demand for its information and support services, of which Mind shops have always been a key source of funding.
Last year, 20 million people accessed Mind’s online and print information – the highest on record, and there were 117k mental health queries responded to by the charity’s information team via phone, email and webchat. The increased demand on the charity, and decreased funds, means Mind shops, like those of many charities, need volunteers and donations more than ever.
And, after months of Mind shops being closed, and a surge in sales since reopening, stock levels across shops are low. It was winter when Mind’s shops closed so clothing for the spring and summer months is particularly needed. According to the charity, the average bag of items donated to one of its shops is worth around £30 – and 25% more if the donor signs up for Gift Aid.
Andrew Vale, Managing Director of Mind Retail, said:
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“This record-breaking month is testament to the tireless efforts of our dedicated volunteers and staff, as well as our generous donors and customers. Raising £1.5million in a month is incredible, and much-needed, to make up for the losses incurred by forced shop closures throughout the pandemic.
“Our wonderful staff and volunteers are doing incredible things – but they could do so much more with extra hands and donations. Due to the challenges of the pandemic, many volunteers have been unable to return – leaving shops struggling to cope. Volunteering doesn’t need to be a big time-consuming commitment – and volunteers benefit from the opportunity to build their confidence, skills and gain qualifications.
“Ongoing support from staff, volunteers, donors and customers is crucial to make sure Mind’s shops can survive in this challenging climate facing our high streets.”
Other charities have also reported good starts. Back in April, Sense reported a record-breaking return to trading on the first day of non-essential retail reopening. It reopened 107 of its shops across England and Wales on the 12 April, and recorded an 85% increase on its previous one-day sales record set on Saturday 5 December 2020.
The British Heart Foundation also reported its busiest ever day for its network of charity shops when the third national lockdown was partially lifted in April, achieving £1m in sales.
In related news, money-saving and online fundraising platform Savoo recently analysed the 20 most populated cities in the UK to determine which are the most charitable, looking at average monthly Google searches related to charity, the number of charity shops according to Google Maps, the average rating given by customers and the average weekly household expenditure on charitable donations. The discount code website also ranked countries according to their generosity.
Among its findings, it has revealed that:
- Brighton & Hove, Nottingham and Belfast are the most charitable cities in the UK.
- Brighton and Hove has highest volume of monthly Google searches for terms related to charity (92,100).
- Besides having the biggest quantity of charity shops and the highest number of average Google searches for keywords related to charity, London has less than 1 charity shop per square mile and the lowest overall ratings for charity shops on Google Maps.
- Nottingham has six charity shops per square mile, more than any other city.
- There are more than two million average monthly Google searches for charity-related terms in the UK
Looking forward, Ed Fleming, Managing Director at Savoo commented:
“We predict that charity shops will continue to have a deep impact on retail consumption across the UK – especially after the challenges of the last year. It’s a wonderful way to find interesting items at cheaper prices, save money and help causes we deeply care about.”
About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.