Super.Mkt: a symptom of the charity shop revolution

Secondhand shopping has had its moment in the spotlight in recent years, as the stigma of repeating outfits and being seen in an unfashionable charity shop have dissipated to make way for sustainably-conscious shopping. Even before the cost-of-living crisis was on the tip of everyone’s tongues, the appeal of “buying vintage” resonated with many. 

And the rising popularity of charity shopping is not unfounded, as enthusiasm among consumers has reached such heights that sales at charity shops have bucked the high street trend by rising 11% in 2022, according to the latest figures from the Charity Retail Association (CRA).

What’s more, the CRA has seen a 10.8% year-on-year increase in in-store income at its member stores, as the average number of daily transactions shot up 11% from 64 to 71. Meanwhile, 64% of its member charities reported that the volume of donations had risen in line with increased demand. 

The chief executive of the CRA, Robin Osterley, has acknowledged this rise in charity shopping popularity, by saying, “shoppers are turning to charity shops to get the best value for their money and the growth in charity shop footfall, as well as the rise in sustainable shopping interest, is showing no signs of slowing down”.

Given these statistics, the launch of the first multi-charity preloved fashion store, Super.Mkt, in Brent Cross doesn’t come as a surprise. The pop-up in the Brent Cross shopping centre, which debuted on 27 January and will run for four weeks, has partnered with 10 charities to amass a variety of clothes under one roof “for the very first time”. 

The pop-up was brought about by Wayne Hemingway, the founder of British fashion brand Red or Dead and Hemingway Design, and Maria Chenoweth, the CEO of sustainable clothing charity TRAID, which has helped stock Super.Mkt. According to Chenoweth, Super.Mkt’s approach to fashion retail is that the clothes we buy “should feel good and do good, with an in-store experience that offers a buzz and great personal interactions”. 

The contributing charities include Age UK, All Aboard, Barnardo’s, Cancer Research, Emmaus, Havens Hospice, SCT, Marie Curie, and Shelter, as well as TRAID, which have donated quality second hand garments from labels such as Harvey Nichols, all the way to Topshop and C&A. According to Chenoweth, they only had four weeks to pull a 10,000 sq ft shop together, which left choosing the stock up to the charity retail brands. 

“The only remit was that it had to be ‘fashion’,” Chenoweth says. “The clothes are chosen in the traditional way, from clothes gratefully donated by the public.”

Sarah Tinsley, the director of marketing and placemaking at Hammerson, which owns and operates Brent Cross shopping centre, also notes: “In terms of fashion, we hear from our brands that shoppers are really enjoying mixing and matching unique preloved items alongside special new finds.”

Tinsley also sees that the wider shift to being more sustainable is important. Therefore, she notes that in preparing the space for Super.Mkt, Hammerson worked to refurbish with nothing but reused and recycled materials that were already onsite. 

Both Hemingway and Chenoweth have had a long, storied history working with second-hand clothes, both personally and professionally, having worked together on and off for over 24 years. In fact, Super.Mkt’s launch coincides with Chenoweth’s 30th year in charity retail. 

“Charity Super.Mkt evolved from a couple of pilots at Coal Drop Yard in Kings Cross,” Chenoweth explains. “We had also been listening to charity retailers and seen second-hand clothing beginning to be nibbled at by fast fashion and commercial companies. We were also driven by greenwashing stories ending up in the press, whilst the real good retailers, the charities, were given no attention.”

Charity retail as a business model is totally circular; it is predicated on taking someone’s unwanted goods and selling them to someone else. Chenoweth believes in this model not only because it generates critical funding for parts of society that are financially neglected by the government, but because of the green jobs it creates, while also keeping goods (that would otherwise be thrown away) in use.

According to CRA statistics, yearly sales of goods at charity shops have helped divert 339,000 tonnes of textiles alone from landfill, all while contributing £363m towards the cost of research or the services these charities provide to people in local communities. 

Chenoweth and Tinsley have both attributed the surge in charity shopping’s popularity to the coming-of-age of Gen Z, who as a generation, are perceived to be the most concerned with sustainability. 

“Second-hand and sustainability go hand-in-hand; I think they realise that the climate crisis is going to be their crisis,” Chenoweth says. 

“Younger consumers have definitely driven this trend, particularly Gen Z and millennials who are now more conscious about the impact of their spending on the planet and are more frequently demanding retailers expand their commitment to sustainability or research a company’s commitment before making a purchase,” Tinsley says. “The fashion industry also needs to be credited for implementing systemic change, with many big brands moving towards a much more sustainable position. We’ve seen this with big fashion houses taking a more ethical approach to the runway, which has trickled down to high street retailers.” 

The wider context of the state of the fashion industry and the climate crisis feeds back into the resurgence in the popularity of second-hand shopping. Tinsley, as the marketer for the Brent Cross shopping centre, has witnessed how in the last 18 months, this trend has been “turbocharged by the appeal of its relative affordability”, especially now with the price of everyday products increasing.

It is reported that 65% of people are now wearing something second-hand, while 80% of second-hand purchases have been made through a charity shop. Given the inflated price of everything at the moment, it could be argued that charity retail and more charity collaborations like Super.Mkt could breathe new life into shopping centres that, without these pop-ups, would otherwise be left tired and past its time. As Chenoweth says, “anyone that thinks charity shops are a blight on the high street is outdated and needs to think again”.