How your trip to the charity shop won't be the same again: Donated clothes to be quarantined for two days and customers will be banned from trying on clothes
- Charity Shops are introducing new protocols to prevent spread of COVID-19
- Some of the 3,000 retailers have started reopening after the national lockdown
- New measures will see all donations go through a quarantine period before sale
- Other stores will introduce perspex screens and ban trying on clothing
New safety measures will change the way charity stores operate across Australia, as shops begin reopening after the coronavirus lockdown.
All donations will be forced to go through a period of quarantine before being placed on shelves and sold to customers.
But even then some shops will be banning customers from trying on clothes - as a hygiene measure to prevent the possible spread of COVID-19.
Some charity shops will be banning customers from trying on clothes - as a hygiene measure to prevent the possible spread of COVID-19
After two months of lockdown some of the 3,000 charity stores in Australia are starting to open their doors due to easing restrictions.
CEO of the National Association of Charitable Recycling Organisations Omer Soker told Daily Mail Australia the shopping experience is going to be very different.
'Before an item gets into a shop it needs to sit in quarantine for some time. Most people are quarantining for 48 hours, 72 hours, sometimes longer. There is no data on how long the virus lasts on different surfaces so it's just a question of being extra safe,' Mr Soker said.
That means some shops will be asking customers not to try on any clothes to prevent the clothing having to go through a second quarantine period.
After two months of lockdown some of the 3,000 charity stores in Australia are starting to open their doors due to easing restrictions around COVID-19
Volunteers have already been isolating and sorting donations behind the scenes during the lockdown due to the large quantities of goods being donated
Some shops have installed perspex screens while others have changed their aisle directions or sizes and, others have increased distances between customers and checkouts.
Organisations will also be putting paid staff members and volunteers through new training for occupational health and safety.
Mr Soker said it's not a case of all stores opening at the same time, and shoppers will need to do their own research to find out when their local retailer opens.
'This is a slow and staggered return with larger format stores re-opening first to roll out new social distancing and customer safety protocols,' he said.
'Please check ahead to make sure your favourite local charity shop is open.'
Volunteers have already been isolating and sorting donations behind the scenes during the lockdown due to the large quantities of goods being donated.
The influx of donations was though to be linked to many people wanting to declutter their homes after being trapped inside for such a long period of time.
The closure of charity shops due to COVID-19 resulted in issues around illegal dumping, as piles of rubbish formed outside shop fronts due to a cease in collections
Mountains of unwanted goods were dumped in front of the St Vincent De Paul's in Waverley in Sydney's Eastern suburbs over the Easter long weekend
While some people were doing the right thing, the closure of charity shops also resulted in issues around illegal dumping, as piles of rubbish formed outside shop fronts due to a cease in collections.
Stores in affluent Sydney suburbs like Mosman and Waverley were inundated with donations over the Easter Long weekend despite stores putting a halt on donations during the early days of COVID-19.
Pictures of the overlowing bins at Mosman were described as 'unbelievable' and 'disgusting', with many labelling the behaviour 'selfish' and calling for CCTV cameras to identify the perpetrators.
While charity shops typically generate $550million each year through the sale of goods through their stores they also face a national bill of $18million to clean up donations dumped on the streets or outside stores.
Pictures of the overflowing charity bins at Vinnies in Mosman, Sydney (pictured) were described as 'unbelievable' and 'disgusting', with many labelling the behaviour 'selfish' and calling for CCTV cameras to identify the perpetrators
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