The Charity Shop Chat is a podcast for anyone who works, volunteers with or simply loves charity retail. Hosted by Charlotte Greenwood and Mimi Cartwright, the show brings together honest conversations with the people who make the sector what it is - people working everyday support our high streets and create real lasting change in the non profit sector. Each episode spotlights stories and teaching from behind the counter; the challenges, the moments that make it all worthwhile, and the realities of working in charity retail today.
In this episode of Charity Shop Chat, Charlotte Greenwood and Mimi Cartwright are joined by author and journalist Tansy Hoskins to look at the world of charity shops from a different perspective.
Tansy’s new book, Charity Shop World, explores charity shops, consumption, community and what really happens to the things we no longer want. She spent four years researching it, including 16 months sorting donations on the shop floor of a London charity shop.
Tansy’s book Charity Shop World is out now. You can find her at tansyhoskins.org and on social media as Tansy Hoskins.
13 Oct 2026
Rebel Rags: The M&S Picky Bits of the High Street and the Pre-Loved Fashion Movement
Secondhand used to be whispered about. Now it’s worn proudly, shared loudly and styled boldly. In this episode, Charlotte and Mimi are joined by Sara, the vintage-hunting, thrift-hauling force of nature behind Rebel Rags Vintage, to talk about how pre-loved fashion has become about identity, confidence and community.
Sarah shares how a love of getting dressed turned into a following, why charity shops are the “picky bits” buffet of the high street, and how affordable experimenting helps people rediscover their style. We also dig into what charity retail can learn from the influencer world, plus a rapid fire round, what everyone is manifesting to find in a charity shop!
29 Sept 2026
Billy Farrell: The Loyalty Scheme and How to Build a Future Focused Charity Retail
In this episode of The Charity Shop Chat, Mimi and Charlotte are joined by Billy Farrell, Director of Income Generation at Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland, for a conversation about what happens when charity retail starts thinking a little differently.
Billy tells us how his team signed up 18,000 customers to their loyalty scheme in just nine months, discovering that half of them were also donating stock. With £5 vouchers driving customers back into shops, the scheme is giving the charity a whole new way to understand its customers, build relationships and turn shoppers into supporters.
But that's just the beginning. We get into charity shops in the metaverse, how to optimise sales data, experimenting with AI, creating new products, finding funding for innovation and, importantly, what happens when a supposedly brilliant idea just doesn't work.
Billy makes the case for being curious, trying things, failing quickly and looking outside the charity sector for inspiration.
Because the future of charity retail might involve a loyalty card, a metaverse shop... or something we haven't even thought of yet.
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