Derry best city in the north to shop for second-hand gifts this Christmas

Carried out by sustainable living experts, Bower Collective, the study factors in the number of vintage shops, second-hand shops as well as the number of vintage kilo-sales and table-top sales per capita to find the best places to go thrift shopping ahead of Christmas.

Among the key findings of the UK-wide survey was that Derry has the 4th most vintage stores per capita in the UK, with 8 and Belfast has the 10th most per capita, with 20.

The authors state: "Considering all factors, the study found that Derry is the ‘thrifty-gifting’ capital of Northern Ireland. Derry also has the 4th most vintage shops per capita in the UK — with eight to explore.

"There is great opportunity to host second-hand events like vintage kilo sales in Northern Ireland, as only six of the locations on the study did not advertise any second-hand events in the local area, and half of these were in Northern Ireland.

"The study also examined the search volumes of each city for sustainable and second-hand shopping terms like ‘sustainable gifts’, ‘charity shops' and ‘vintage kilo sale’. Overall, Belfast

searches for relevant terms the most per capita in Northern Ireland.

"However, they also found that searches in Londonderry increased by 50% in the past year alone, the largest one-year rise in Northern Ireland -- with searches for ‘vintage kilo sale’ up by 75% alone.

"Overall across the UK, Norwich, Worthing, Newcastle and Worcester are the best places to buy a pre-loved present. From looking at Google search trends, the study also found that

Brits are searching for ‘sustainable gifts’ 988% more than they were three years ago and 2021 searches for ‘charity shops’ alone surpass 1.5 million."

Bower Collective aims to reduce plastic waste and promote the consumption of products in reusable and refillable packaging.

For full details visit Bower Collective’s interactive map HERE