Aussie Op Shop Donations Down

Research shows that donations to op shops are down.

Charity stores need more donations – but billions of dollars of clothes are left unused in Aussie wardrobes, according to the organisers of the inaugural ‘National Op Shop Week’.

‘National Op Shop Week’ is an initiative of the Do Something! charity and runs from September 24-­30.

Do Something! founder Jon Dee says more and more Australians are turning to charity op shops to buy clothes.

But at the same time, new research shows that donations to charity op shops are going down and it’s leaving many of them running short of clothes and other items.

As well, research by the British Government shows that UK consumers have £30 billion worth of clothes that they haven’t worn for a year hanging in their wardrobes.

“Given that Australians love our clothes shopping as much as the Brits, we potentially have billions of dollars worth of unused clothing that could be donated to charity op shops,” Dee said.

“With spring upon us, Do Something’s campaign is encouraging Australians to spring clean their homes and give good quality clothing to charity Op Shops. To make it easier to donate, 2000 Australian charity stores have been listed on Do Something’s OpShopWeek.com.au website.

“All that people have to do is type in their postcode to find the contact details for their local charity Op Shop.”

Kerryn Caulfield, the CEO of the National Association of Charitable Recycling Organisations, the peak industry body representing over 2,000 charity op shops around Australia says: “Charity op shops are currently experiencing the lowest stocks on record. When the economy is tight, most people hold onto their possessions, yet demand for charitable assistance increases.”

“We would urge the Australian public to dig deep into their wardrobes and donate good quality clothing and household goods directly to their nearest charity op shops,” Caulfield said.

Supermarket chain ALDI is sponsoring the Do Something and the National Op Shop Week initiative.