Finding Items

One of our key aims is to create and support places where people can donate items they don’t need. We all own too much stuff, some of which we hardly ever use so storing and maintaining it becomes a burden on our homes and our time.

Offering a way for people to clear out their sheds and attics and donate seldom-used items that will be stored, maintained, and made available to the whole community can help everyone achieve a better quality of life.

Your community engagement surveys and tools should indicate the kinds of items people want to borrow.

Think about the size of space you have available on site and whetheryou need to limit your inventory to start with. You can then be more specific in your "Wish List" for donations.

Word of mouth can be highly effective, backed up by social media. People are happy to pass on the items that they rarely use whilst being keen that they continue to be useful and don’t end up as landfill.

Make sure that any items you accept are in good working order with nomissing or broken parts. Be specifically wary of lithium-battery-operated tools; if the battery is at the end of its life, they can be quite expensive to replace.

Electrical items will need to be checked, tested for functionality and PAT-tested by a certified PAT-tester before adding to your inventory. You can find more information on this in the PAT testing chapter.

We have a great relationship with Repair Cafe Wales. Look out for a local Repair Cafe in your area, as they may be able to support you with PAT testing and maintenance.

To find your nearest Repair Cafe - https://repaircafewales.org/events/

There is a template form for accepting donations, which you can find below.

We recommend adding items to your online borrowing platform as they come in, to keep track of them and record maintenance and PAT-testing as you go.

If the item requires instructions and the originals are missing,locate manuals via an internet search so you can attach them to the item listing. Most mainstream manufacturers will have instructions available online. Contact their customer services if you have trouble locating them.

There are some dedicated manual websites but check first to ensure they are free to access! We often use https://www.manuals.co.uk/

For safety reasons, we recommend that you only put items on your online inventory that have a manual available. The manual provides important information on how to use the items safely, any recommended PPE ( Personal Protective Equipment), and how to maintain them.

When uploading the manual, you can also select that it be sent out to borrowers on checkout, which means they have instant access via email and onthe item product page.

Borrowing platforms allow you to add videos; most power tool/machinery manufacturers have online demonstration videos available that can be helpful to users.

Providing as much information to the borrower when listing an item not only helps with risk mitigation but will also help members use the item safely and successfully, ensuring a good borrowing experience and the item is returned in good condition.

When writing the item description, consider useful tips about the item's size, weight, and whether it may need more than one person to collect it. Also, consider recommended sundries and whether they are available from your LOT.

We have provided a document showing examples in the downloads section below.

Several network members have also started sending out laminated instructions with items so that people have easy access to instructions while setting up the item ready to use. This has been particularly helpful with the ever-popular carpet cleaner! If items don't have a box, you can attach them with string or cable ties.

If items on the community Wishlist are unlikely to be donated, checkin with other Benthyg branches or the Benthyg Cymru team to see if there are any duplicates of items that other branches can donate to you.

If you have a budget, consider buying ‘loss-leader’ items—things that people would want to borrow but are unlikely to donate, like a gazebo or a pressure washer. These items will help get people through the door, and once they are signed up, they’ll see what else they could borrow.

It is also worth trying local businesses and your local Housing Associations to see if they have any small community pots of money for you to purchase items, or perhaps they could donate a specific item. Examples of items donated in projects so far: thermal digital cameras, carpet cleaner, camera equipment.

Many large retailers often end up with unsellable items whether due to returns, ex-display or sustaining minor cosmetic damage during shipping. These items are often discarded, but businesses are eager to donate them. These items are called deadstock and we know a UK LOT that received over £3000 worth of items this way. They suggest when approaching retailers, that you ask "What's your current process for handling deadstock?". Using terminology that is common to them will get you talking to the right people and hopefully lead to donations! 

Deciding what to invest in can be ama particularly when you have a fixed budget. Reach out to other network members and your local development officer for the latest insight into popular items to invest in. The Benthyg team can share expertise on which makes and models offer the best value for money; spare parts are readily available, and the items are repairable where possible. You will need to keep part of your budget for spare parts.

You will find a list of the Top 50 popular items ( across the network) in the downloads below.

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Pricing Your Items

The Benthyg Cymru network aims to encourage sharing and normalise borrowing instead of buying, so we advise keeping the prices lower than what you’d expect to pay for an item second-hand or in a charity shop. You could check charity shop websites, eBay, local reuse sites, and local selling sites and talk with your local network development officer and other network members who can share their experiences.

Pricing is an inexact science, so you may want to survey members and monitor which items are being borrowed the most/least to get an idea of whether you’re getting it right.

Look at other libraries of things in the network for a rough guide on prices, but always consider your local conditions.

Consider whether you can offer cash-free alternatives for members, such as time credits and free borrowing for volunteers.

If you decide to use time credits, decide how to price items for them. Lend Engine doesn’t currently allow for items to be listed with a time credit price, so it is simpler to decide on an equivalent price e.g. £5 = 1 timecredit, with 1 time credits being the minimum charge(so if someone borrows something that is £3 they still pay 1 time credit).

The standard borrowing period may be dictated by how frequently you’re open – if you’re only open once a week then borrows will need to be priced per week. If you have more regular opening, you can amend this to what suits your opening times.

You also need to consider the cost of replacement parts and sundries. For example, strimmers need replacement string. Are you going to provide this and then incorporate a bit extra into the price to cover the cost of replacing this.

Some network members have deposits in place for expensive equipment such as marquees, thermal digital cameras, etc., anything that would be costly to replace or repair.

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