The charity shop volunteer in Scotland: greatest asset or biggest headache?

Employment patterns in various sectors of retailing have received much research attention in recent years, and investigation into charity volunteering is prolific. There is, however, little academic research to date into employment issues in charity retailing or reference to the volunteers who work in charity shops. This has been a neglected topic, left in the hands of those with particular charity interests rather than an academic topic in its own right. This paper looks at the profile of the charity shop volunteer and raises the issues of future changes in technology and competition which might have an impact on current volunteers.