Cathy Crichton: SPCA general manager of retail on the unusable donations driving up rubbish fees

Op-shop rubbish fees are piling up as people dump masses of 'unusable' items outside. 

The SPCA says it's spent $250,000 this year. 

Retail general manager Cathy Crichton says the charity's grateful to receive donations of quality items - but people also leave damaged or unhygienic items it must throw away. 

She says binning large items like mattresses can cost a lot.

"That, in itself, is eroding the good work that our volunteers and team members are doing and building fundraising - and that's the commercial challenge."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now charity shops. Charity shops are facing massive bills, they say,
because of all the stuff that people are donating that's
having to go in the trash. There's one in kai
Koi up north that's complained that it's getting so many
donations of stained underwear and wholly underwear gross that their
skippin is filling up every couple of weeks. Now, Kathy
Criton is the SPCA General manager of Retail and with us. Now, Hey, Kathy, Hi,

(00:23):
have you guys got the same problem?

Speaker 2 (00:26):
Generally speaking, yes, I'd say that's part of the challenge.
But look, predominantly we get some very quality donations and
we're extremely grateful for them. The challenge is the dumping
piece and when we're donated items that are not sellable.
When you know, I think in the process of assessing donations,
the thought process being you know, is it sellable, is

(00:48):
it safe? And is it hygienic? And your example just.

Speaker 1 (00:51):
Then okay, so have you had the holy undies.

Speaker 2 (00:57):
Look, that would come through time to time. I don't
think it's a regular and you wouldn't want that, you know,
primarily it would be unsellable clothing, so not of the
quality that you could on sell.

Speaker 1 (01:10):
This is the question that Kathy I do. I am
confused by this, okay, because I have been clearing out
the closets and stuff lately. I've had a massive surge
of Paulmones making me do that, and then I didn't
know I would take it to the charity bin things,
you know, but I didn't know what the standard was
for what you people want? How do you know?

Speaker 2 (01:29):
Yeah, I would say, you know, if you think that
someone else would benefit from that product or be happy
to pay for it, that's where it definitely is, you know,
a sellable donation and gratefully received. I think when you think,
oh it's kind of on the edge, maybe it's hold
or you know, needing mending, that's where I would suggest

(01:51):
that you know, some customers coming through aren't looking for
that type of product. The hygiene issues that you've highlighted,
you know, they're serious. Definitely wouldn't make it to the
shop floor, but you'd think that people would consider that
along the way.

Speaker 1 (02:05):
That's a slam dunkers and if the undies have performed
in it, okay, Yeah, So what you're saying to me
is if it needs any mending, been it don't put
it in the charity bin.

Speaker 2 (02:14):
Generally speaking, yes, there could always be a customer for that,
but what we find is those are the pieces that
aren't picked up by customers.

Speaker 1 (02:23):
Is it true that you guys have had a two
hundred and fifty thousand dollars bill for the last year
across all your shops just to get rid of stuff
that people dump on you that you don't need.

Speaker 2 (02:31):
Yes, that's a combination of wastage as well as recycling,
because there is a conscious effort obviously to recycle in
the process. But if you think about things that you
might have seen outside op shops that are dumped overnight,
things like mattresses, you know, quite sizeable articles and quite
sizable cost of dumping that's assumed by a charity. You

(02:53):
know that in itself is eroding from the good work
that our volunteers and team members are doing and building fundraising.
And that's the challenge, the commercial challenge. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (03:03):
Interesting, Hey, thank you very much, Kathy appreciated. Kathy crist
and SPCA General manager of Retail. For more from Heather
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