A MUM who went hunting for her kids’ Christmas presents at the TIP said she saw a Nintendo Wii for just £20.
Dianne Bourne visited a household waste and recycling centre in Greater Manchester to see if she could find any bargains in the week before the big day.
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To her surprise, she was able to sniff out branded items for her son – including £100 toys that were being sold for just a fiver.
Wandering around the tip in Altrincham, she found rows and rows of bikes, Christmas trees, Nintendo consoles and X Box‘s.
All of the items, which are either pre-loved items or brand new, are donated to the tip and then cleaned up and tested before being sold.
The shop which cleans up the products is called Renew – with a few sites opening up across Manchester in the last few years.
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Renew lets people donate and buy during their visit – with the aim of recycling as much as possible.
During Dianne’s trip, she was able to get her son a bike that was more than £100 cheaper than it would have been on the high street.
Writing in Manchester Evening News, she said: “At this time of year, the shops are actually a bit of a godsend for those looking to buy Christmas presents on a budget.
“Bikes I’d been looking at buying for my son that cost an eye-watering £150 for new, are priced at £35 here and I’m staggered.
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“A ride-on push-along Mini car that pretty much ANY toddler would absolutely love is an absolute steal at £5.
“If you look online to buy this, it costs £99.99 new.
“[And] I snapped up an unopened toddler bedding set for £5 that costs £17 new.”
Renew manager Claire Williams told Dianne that they are very busy this time of year.
She said: “We do get a lot of regulars, because we get new stock coming in every other day, so there’s always new things to buy.
“At this time of year we’re very busy, particularly with things like chairs, crockery and glasses, as people need extras for family gatherings.
“And people are looking out for Christmas presents and trees – we have lots and lots with more expected to come in over the next week as people get rid of their old decorations.”
Items that may have been dumped and are usually of higher value are sold on the shop’s eBay account.
Any money raised in store or through eBay is donated to the Recycle for Greater Manchester Community Fund and the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity.
Some of the bargains that were found in the week leading up to Christmas were:
£2 caterpillar rocker (£49.99 new)
£5 push buggy Mini Cooper (£99.99 new)
£80 United KL bike (£320 new)
£5 Black and Decker drill (£50 new)
£5 George Foreman grill (£35 new)
£55 Technics double piano (£700 new)
£1 flamingo snorkel (£16 new)
£5 bedding (£17 new)
£20 for Nintendo Wii (£200 new)
PlayStation games £1 – £2.50 (£15 – £25 new)
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