Roundabout Charity Store

Why it matters: opened in 2008 by longtime Beijing volunteer Leslie Simpson, Roundabout was mainland China’s first charity store, and store proceeds fund medical care for orphans plus support for 80-some charitable organizations across China and Mongolia. The volunteer-run shop is a proper treasure hunt: secondhand books, furniture, clothes and expat cast-offs at bargain prices, with one of the city’s best English-language used-book selections. Every kuai you spend goes to the cause, since store sales cover all overheads. Practical tip: it’s out toward Shunyi near Cathay View Plaza, so pair it with a lazy brunch in the villa district rather than a downtown day.