CHARITY shops are booming – with one in Huddersfield selling a pair of Jimmy Choo shoes for £100.

The designer label shoes were sold alongside £50 handbags at Oxfam.

Jimmy Choo shoes normally sell for between £250 to £500 so the shopper still got a bargain at £100.

The top quality shoes and handbags were on sale at Oxfam on New Street in Huddersfield.

Manager Lee Craggs said his takings had shot up 25% on last year.

He said: “Last week we sold a pair of Jimmy Choo shoes for £100 and we’re often selling handbags for £50 and collectibles at quite good prices.”

Mr Craggs said big sellers such as women’s clothing and accessories had seen profits up £29,000 for the 2008/09 financial year.

He said: “We quite often sell high-priced things.’’

Huddersfield’s charity shops have beaten the downturn and seen a surge in trade as most high street retailers are crying into their accounts books.

Kirkwood Hospice recently announced its turnover had breached £1m with sales up 8% across all stores, while in Milnsbridge a massive 32% rise has been recorded.

Kirkwood Hospice retail co-ordinator Sue Marsden said the bumper figure was a credit to local residents’ generosity.

“We seem to be bucking the trend at the moment,’’ she said. “I think because we’re local a lot of people know someone who we’ve looked after and that’s reflected in the way we get support from customers and donators.”

Sue said the boost in sales could also be due to the growing network of shops. Last year they opened a new one in Slaithwaite, a drop-off centre and book shop in Dalton and the Heckmondwike and Milnsbridge branches moved to new premises.

A new shop is also set to open in Kirkburton on April 28.

At Cancer Research on Ramsden Street, manager Janet Ryan said her takings were also up 25% on last year.

“We haven’t put our prices up so it’s got to be we’re getting more customers or they’re buying more,’’ she said.

“If they are buying a skirt they are buying a top to go with it.”

Staff at Save the Children on Westgate also said takings were up but weren’t in the millions like Kirkwood Hospice.

A volunteer said: “We’re not racing ahead like they are, but I think we’re doing a bit better than last year.”

But she warned: “If people have less to spend will there be fewer clothes? If people are buying from more budget retailers it means we’re not getting the quality we had in previous years.”