March 2023 by Maan's NTViral
It has taken me approximately 6 weeks to realize, reflect and digest fully what happened here at this store. I write this to prewarn people to not become a bullying punch bag for the blonde haired store manager to abuse like I was. As I write this I wish to convey that all views and conclusions are my own.I would like to firstly point out what this store gets right:1. A positive, helpful, hardworking, emphathetic store associate.2. Kind, friendly and helpful store volunteers.3. Only a short stroll from where I live4. Convenience5. Range and quality of itemsBad bits:At this store I was discriminated against due to either and by no means limited to an indirect campaign of institutionalised racism directed specifically from the blonde haired store manager herself and a targeted but subtle bullying campaign eventually followed by a situation where I had to give up in duress one of my most crucial bargains from the shop floor in the hope of saving all my others, this unfortunantely isn't an isolated case. This campaign stretched over a number of years, but unfortunantely I failed to recognize the red flags earlier on, otherwise I would have tackled them head on by taking it up with the manager and area manager sooner rather than much later. My last visit left me leaving the shop feeling cheated, lied to, upset, cold, distressed and depressed all in one package. I must make a point that I do not use the term 'institutionalised racism' lightly, as after much careful thought and piecing together all my other collected experiences at the store and then comparing to the way other people get treated, I had drawn to the eventual but depressingly sad conclusion. As the barriers of what is deemed acceptable customer and store manager relations have breached much too frequently, in my 35 years of shopping at charity stores I had never been subjected to this level of mistreatment in the way I had been treated and that repeatedly at this specific store, by this specific manager, despite having given ample of chances for her to improve. I have found that she had only just grown more confident in my mistreatment, her use of questionable business practices and her conduct to be both diabolical and nauseating. In my last and final visit to the store I had been left panicked, deeply disturbed and even stated that this will indeed be my final payment at this store and that I will not be returning to this store again.It was agreed with her manager, the area manager that her treatment to me is not of the spirit of what Barnados stands for, nor a reflection of the charity itself. It was also agreed that their policy of conducting business was not followed through and the manager indeed broke company rules by taking one of my bargains. I had passed on points of improvements to the area manager. But haven't received the email I was promised, therefore I have, even to this day remained true to my word and refuse to use the store until further notice.It was the Chief Executive of Barnados's article on Money Saving Expert that made me return back to buying at charity retail stores like this one again during the pandemic, who'd expressively stated to visit their retail stores to find bargains and help fight abuse, but in my case it was the direct opposite, it was to find bargains for the store manager and get abused doing it. Whatever shed of happiness I would find, be it CD, DVD, book... etc, this manager would either change the terms of sale, challenge me or take from me all together. In my experience this store is not a charity retail store but a mafioso.If you too have been targeted by the blonde haired manager, who wouldn't identify herself for the purposes of this complaint, please contact Barnados complaint team.
February 2023 by job fhu
Barely any people visit which all money spent goes into the managers pocket who is really rude and refused to help when I was looking for something for my son. I hope corporate do something about her as she is extremely disrespectful and brings a bad reputation to the company
February 2023 by David Rawlings
Lovely welcoming staff with a bright and cheerful shop. It?s a pleasure to volunteer here.
July 2022 by Chrissie Smith
My grandkids love the shop, always get something for them always good quality and a bargain. Karen who works there is always friendly & helpful. The volunteers are lovely too. Lovely to browse.
April 2022 by stacey doyle
I recently popped into Chellaston Bernardo?s and found some lovely items.The staff were so welcoming as always and my mum and I had a lovely chat with the manager and staff. It makes such a difference when you go into a shop and the staff are so friendly.I also found a lovely dress perfect to go with my shoes. Thank you ladies!
January 2022 by paul marshall
Excellent and caring staff. Very friendly. Great priced items and top quality. Highly recommended and all for a great cause.
November 2021 by Amy Dawson
I love coming to this charity shop, and look forward to having things to donate so I can have a browse at the same time, and rarely leave empty handed. The manager is evidently passionate about her work and does an amazing job keeping a well stocked and suitably laid out store with regular turnover of items so there is always new things to look at. There is ample free parking right outside the shop for donations which is a bonus compared with many charity shops which are poorly situated for large/heavy donations. All the staff are super friendly and always willing to help which all adds to the positive atmosphere when browsing. My daughter loves visiting too as she knows that a few "pennies" to spend here gets her substantially more than other shops and it's great to know by buying from a charity shop you are also paying it forward to others. I have bought some amazing quality clothes, gorgeous home decor items and many children's clothes, books and games always at very affordable prices, some never used and brand new. I would highly recommend people trying here before other places, especially if they need something for a particular occasion....you might be pleasantly surprised what treasures you can find.
September 2021 by Karly
My grandkids love the shop, always get something for them always good quality and a bargain. Karen who works there is always friendly & helpful. The volunteers are lovely too. Lovely to browse.
July 2021 by Danielle Bootstrap
Such a lovely place to find a great bargain! All the volunteers are wonderful and so helpful. I visit regularly and I am always greeted with a friendly welcome. I have bought many quality items from here. Thank you! Keep up the great work and have a great Christmas x
July 2021 by Jacqui Anderson
Lovely shop, I never leave here without buying something, lots of bargains, special offers weekly, friendly staff, well set out and Covid safe. Always received a very warm and genuine welcome from the manager, highly recommended
July 2021 by Caroline DYKE
Absolutely love this shop. I always find something lovely to buy and they always have some great bargains. Today they had summer dresses at a £1 each. Amazing! Also the staff are always lovely and friendly and we always have a chat. Great work guys. Xxxx
February 2019 by Wendy Brookes
I always shop here and have bought some lovely items. I regularly donate things too. It's a great shop and all the staff and volunteers are polite and friendly. Well done to all, you're doing a great job and you're such kind people for giving up your time to help others. The world is a better place because of volunteers like you!
February 2019 by user 12345678920
Lovely shop. I picked up some lovely frames ready to customize and some great bargain books for the kids. The staff were really helpful, particularly a lady called sue who went out of her way to find me the frames I wanted and the kids their favourite books. Will be back again ð???
February 2019 by Stephanie Gallacher
Took a car full of donations yesterday and was so disappointed. I walked in with the first of the bags and said I have some donations for you and the two members of staff near the till didnâ??t even acknowledge me. No one helped me with brining the bags and boxes in, no one helped with the door. I made four trips to and from the car to bring everything in and at no point did anyone speak to me. When I brought the last box in both staff members had gone into the back so no one asked me to sign up for gift aid or even thanked me. I didnâ??t make the donations for thanks but to not even be spoken to or acknowledged is just plain rude. I definitely wonâ??t be taking anything to them again.
October 2018 by Surgery II-//
Excellent customer service"thorougly recommend
