What?: London-based chain of boutique charity shops all beautifully designed and curated to create a thrift-store experience like no other. Expect top-notch, barely used baby equipment, lightly loved picture books, high-end toys and rails chock-full of quality designer and high-street clothing. All of FARA’s kids’ shops have been strategically placed in yummy mummy hotspots so they’re ripe with rich-kid rejects – think Little Marc Jacobs bombers, Early Rider wooden balance bikes and pricy co-sleeping cribs made affordable. It’s also nice to know that FARA never refuses donations and all profits go towards running programmes that transform the lives of some of the most vulnerable children and young adults in Romania.
Where?: FARA has kids’ branches in Balham, Barnes, Chiswick, Clapham, Ealing, Earlsfield, Fulham, Notting Hill, Pimlico, Primrose Hill, Richmond, Southfields and Teddington, as well as 30 adult branches across London and Surrey.
Price Range: A bit pricier than your average chazza, but given the caliber of the castoffs on offer it’s actually extremely reasonable. As you would imagine, the Primrose Hill branch is a particularly good spot for bagging a bargain.
Best Bits: If you write down your details when you donate to FARA they will send you an email telling you how much money your items made, which is a great incentive to have a clear out.
Worst Bits: You’ll always have to sift through the chaff to find the wheat, but there is a much lower percentage of chaff here than in other charity shops.
Did We Buy?: Past purchases have included a Miffy top and bunny dress from Gap Kids, and Baby Lit’s cute adaption of Dracula. I massively regret not buying the Stella McCartney matching dress and knickers set I found in the Primrose Hill branch last summer, and the pristine Bugaboo Bee on sale for £40 that Bab Dad said I wasn’t allowed because apparently three buggies is too many.
Would We Come Back?: You never know what you’re going to find in these brilliant little shops and the stock turnover is pretty high so it’s always worth a browse.
UHHH! UHHH! WHINEY CHILDREN NOT WELCOME. Outside FARA Kids, Primrose Hill
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