Our trained volunteers and staff sort and price every item you donate to make as much money as possible.
And even if an item doesn't sell in our shops, we can still make money from it. Here's how.
Clothing recycling
Our unique recycling plant, Wastesaver, maximises revenue from textiles that cannot be resold in our shops, and minimises the amount of textiles sent to landfill.
The facility sorts 80 tonnes of clothing a week. Every item can be used to make money for our poverty-busting work, including being sold on the Oxfam Online Shop, in our Oxfam Festival Shops, or selling them onto fashion designers who restyle garments and reuse fabrics.
Damaged or low grade items can be sold to recycling traders so they can, for instance, be turned into car soundproofing or mattress stuffing.
Selling clothing overseas
By keeping as much as possible to be sold in the UK, we raise the greatest amount possible from your donations to help our fight against poverty around the world.
Donations that cannot be sold in the UK market for various reasons can be exported to markets in Europe, Africa or Asia in line with our ethical supply policy.
For example, lightweight summer clothing will go to our Frip Ethique social enterprise project in Senegal. The project is designed to provide employment in Dakar for disadvantaged women and generate a profit that can be invested in livelihood programmes run by Oxfam in West Africa.
Unsold books
Unsold books can also generate cash. Most go to our Book Barn, where they're sold through other Oxfam shops or on eBay, Amazon or online auction. If they don't sell there, we'll send them to be recycled into boxes and other paper products.
Oxfam also recycles cardboard, CDs, DVDs, electricals and glass.
To delve deeper into the reselling and recycling process, follow the journey of a bag of donated goods through an Oxfam shop.