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Do charity bookshops drive out other second-hand bookshops?

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Re: Do charity bookshops drive out other second-hand bookshops?

#41

Post by toofy »

AStonesThrow wrote: post #2

Aren't brick-and-mortar bookshops, generally speaking, as viable as Apatosaurus today? Lately if I really must put hands on dead trees, the shelves of library sales, churches, and ordinary thrift stores are overflowing. Also — secondhand books are generally outdated, undesirable, and/or damaged — do collectors still find diamonds in the rough? No reason to waste real estate on any sort of dedicated seller. Goodness g…

im not sure this is at all accurate. the book stores around here that carry a good selection are always packed.

Re: Do charity bookshops drive out other second-hand bookshops?

#42

Post by [deleted] »

mywittyname wrote: post #35
fidotron wrote: post #3

There's a subtext to this post that may not be obvious to non British people: UK High Streets (Main Streets) have in the last 20 years experienced an incredible explosion of charity shops (thrift stores) including many locations specific to books. Quite why this has occurred is a subject of occasional argument, but I've never heard a definitive theory on it, and it partly overlaps with the general decline motivated b…

> Ten years ago they used to be fantastic for obscure finds because it seemed people had not caught on, but these days they tend to be subpar, which is probably a major edge the non charitable enterprises have exploited. Not sure about UK, but in the USA, people have discovered that there's profit in mining thrift stores for quality products and reselling them. Usually online, but also in antique malls*. There are a…

[deleted]

Re: Do charity bookshops drive out other second-hand bookshops?

#43

Post by danparsonson »

asciimov wrote: post #37
charlie-83 wrote: post #20

Interesting analysis. I'm somewhat confused by why anyone would think charity bookshops replacing secondhand bookshops would be a bad thing (if that were to actually be happening as the article suggests there isn't much evidence of this). Surely, to the shopper, they are exactly the same except one helps a charitable cause as a bonus.

“Charity” shops in my area are for profit businesses. Sure someone is getting a small donation, but their board members pull large salaries. Never mind their free inventory and usually underpaid labor.

The directors getting paid doesn't make a charity for-profit - that's dependent on what they do with the remaining money after paying salaries. For-profit businesses distribute surplus (i.e. profit) to shareholders.

It's a common complaint that donations should not be used to pay salaries, but the important question should be how much leverage those paid staff can extract out your donation. Skilled people usually don't want to work for free, but they can magnify a donation by reaching more potential donors via advertising, more appealing shops, etc.

Re: Do charity bookshops drive out other second-hand bookshops?

#44

Post by dingaling »

mywittyname wrote: post #35
fidotron wrote: post #3

There's a subtext to this post that may not be obvious to non British people: UK High Streets (Main Streets) have in the last 20 years experienced an incredible explosion of charity shops (thrift stores) including many locations specific to books. Quite why this has occurred is a subject of occasional argument, but I've never heard a definitive theory on it, and it partly overlaps with the general decline motivated b…

> Ten years ago they used to be fantastic for obscure finds because it seemed people had not caught on, but these days they tend to be subpar, which is probably a major edge the non charitable enterprises have exploited. Not sure about UK, but in the USA, people have discovered that there's profit in mining thrift stores for quality products and reselling them. Usually online, but also in antique malls*. There are a…

In the UK, charity shops got savvy to this and now do their own 'mining'. Valuable items go to HQ to list on eBay for a lucrative price, the remaining dross goes onto the shop shelves.

There are some exceptions to this such as specialist charity bookshops which keep the stock locally, but do make sure to price match with the going rate online.

Few diamonds to be found in the rough nowadays.

Re: Do charity bookshops drive out other second-hand bookshops?

#45

Post by FridayoLeary »

shout out to haye on wye in wales where almost all the shops are second hand bookstores. that being said i bought no books there while i have bought a dozen or so from charity shops, the main reason being the price is so low they are basically being given away.

Re: Do charity bookshops drive out other second-hand bookshops?

#46

Post by jamiek88 »

whartung wrote: post #28
amiga386 wrote: post #10

My experience has been that the second-hand bookshops have had thin times but nonetheless survive because of the internet. They tend to have a better selection compared to charity shops, i.e. not just cast-offs of holiday novels and celeb bios. Shout out to https://www.tillsbookshop.co.uk/ and https://www.armchairbooks.co.uk/ There has also been a growth in first-hand bookshops, especially specialists/curators (e.g.…

> only selling sci-fi Ah, memories of the late “A Change of Hobbit” in LA. A dedicated sci-fi/fantasy bookshop. I distinctly recall getting a towel signed by Douglas Adams during one of his signings, I may have met Ellison there once. Been a long time.

I will give you literally all my money for that towel!!

You lucky, lucky man, you hoopy frood.

Please tell me you aren’t gonna say you don’t know where you towel is?

Re: Do charity bookshops drive out other second-hand bookshops?

#47

Post by m463 »

jrmg wrote: post #38
kayo_20211030 wrote: post #19

What's the fundamental difference? They're stores with old books; someone makes a few cents. I honestly don't understand the question.

It can of course vary considerably by store, and I’ll happily spend time in both but, generally: Second hand bookshops are curated actively - like, they’ll only stock desirable books. They’re owned and run, usually, by people who love books. The staff tend to be knowledgeable. Charity book shops are much less curated - to the extent that some just stock whatever is donated (which, of course, is largely made up of boo…

I wonder if #1 comes over and culls through #2

Re: Do charity bookshops drive out other second-hand bookshops?

#48

Post by bombcar »

dingaling wrote: post #44
mywittyname wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Ten years ago they used to be fantastic for obscure finds because it seemed people had not caught on, but these days they tend to be subpar, which is probably a major edge the non charitable enterprises have exploited. Not sure about UK, but in the USA, people have discovered that there's profit in mining thrift stores for quality products and reselling them. Usually online, but also in antique malls*. There are a…

In the UK, charity shops got savvy to this and now do their own 'mining'. Valuable items go to HQ to list on eBay for a lucrative price, the remaining dross goes onto the shop shelves. There are some exceptions to this such as specialist charity bookshops which keep the stock locally, but do make sure to price match with the going rate online. Few diamonds to be found in the rough nowadays.

US, too, though the US has tons of smaller “independent” (read tied to a single local food bank, etc) thrift stores that can still have finds.

But the era of LEGO at Goodwill is over; all that stuff goes to the auction sites.

Re: Do charity bookshops drive out other second-hand bookshops?

#50

Post by benoau »

Anecdotal but I haven't seen a 2nd-hand bookshop in years however those little "tiny libraries" where people just donate their books are in abundance. What I've seen other used-item shops are doing these days is checking online what things are worth and selling them for very slightly less and it seems like this has to be a death-knell for secondhand stores in general.

And I know they have to do this, everything donated has to be checked to ensure safety and cleanliness, it costs them money to keep the shop open and staffed. But if you can't actually save money by buying secondhand goods there then why would anyone shop there?! It's a 10 - 20 percent discount on goods that may be years old when Amazon rotates these discounts through new goods 24/7.

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