Can charity shops be good for indie retail?
British designer, founder of fashion brand ‘Red or Dead’, Wayne Hemingway MBE was perhaps an odd choice of speaker at the British Independent Retailers Association Conference. conference last week, introducing as he was his latest venture, Charity Super.Mkt.
Charity shops have long been criticised by many indie retailers as the death of the High Street.
However, a series of examples and statistics presented by Wayne may have persuaded a cynical audience that Charity Super.Mkt offers a shopping experience that is an "awakening experience" for Gen Z and Gen A consumers. Indeed, such is the success of this new initiative, it has attracted the interest of big brand retailers including Apple.
Charity Super.Mkt was founded in response to a rise in second-hand greenwash and to disprove the outdated notion that charity shops ruin high streets. Listening to charities and their desire to broaden their demographic and horizons Hemingway and his partner, Maria Chenoweth, created an umbrella brand to get charity retailers into mainstream spaces and places that they wouldn't normally be able to access, creating a brand that would fit nicely into any prominent location.
After two years of market style pop-ups, Charity Super.Mkt moved things up a gear in January 2023 with its first bricks-and-mortar residency at Brent Cross Shopping Centre and the response was overwhelming. Costs for the fit-out of the vacant unit were approximately £40,000 – an amount Wayne and Maria hoped to be able to get back over the planned 4-week residency. Sales on the first night were in excess of £20,000! The store was so popular, the stay was extended by a further two weeks. 80% of the revenues went to the charities.
Charity Super.Mkt’s launch article was the 3rd most read article on the BBC and the news spread like wildfire, further Charity Super.Mkt pop-ups have appeared in shopping centres across the UK and the total revenue shared by 50 charities now exceeds £2.75M.
At the BIRA conference, Wayne revealed that Apple approached him to locate Charity SuperMkts close to their stores, as it was clear that the initiative was attracting the younger generation and the halo effect was boosting their own footfall and sales. Gen Z and Gen A are seeking variety, vintage, low cost, environmental and sustainable high streets, as well as things to do as well as buy.
When questioned, however, Wayne admitted that the mega charity stores were a city / large-scale shopping centre phenomenon and wouldn’t work in smaller towns, but it does raise the question whether independent retailers’ wide spread prejudice against charity shops is a sensible view, especially if they appear to bring the younger generation on to the High Street.
To inquire about locating a Charity Super.Mkt in your area visit
courier
3moLove this