The clothing and household goods you donate are sold in over 2,100 Goodwill retail stores and on our Internet auction site, www.shopgoodwill.com. The revenues fund job training and other services to prepare people for job success. Goodwill also generates income helping businesses fill gaps caused by labor shortages, time constraints and limited space or equipment. We train and employ contract workers to fill outsourced needs for document management, assembly, mailing, custodial work, groundskeeping and more. More than 83 percent of Goodwill’s total revenues are used to fund education and career services, and other critical community programs. http://www.goodwill.org/page/guest/about/howweoperate

The first answer was good. I would just add that the definition of a non-profit is not how the money is acquired, but how it is distributed. No investors or private individuals can receive the "profits." Good questions. Goodwill is an excellent example of a well-run non-profit business that empowers people to work and earn their own way while attempting to generate much of its own revenue through commerce rather than charity. It is a great model.

Goodwill is hardly the model of a non profit charity. The company Goodwill Industries trains it's management to see themselves as a retail competitor. The proceeds from sales from donations do not directly benefit any groups at all, they simply go towards opening more goodwill stores. the CEO of goodwill makes a generous salary as well. When goodwill has opened as many stores as it can, it will begin to generate considerable profits. Goodwill industries targets communities that already have thrift stores and true charities that benefit the immediaite community. Once Goodwill has investigated an area they build or elase a space and knock the original local charity out. the real question in is it right to take donations from people for valuable goods when the real goal is to simply open more goodwill stores. As far as the "skills" goodwill teaches, most people working at goodwill learn everything they need to know in about a week. Running a cash register, tagging and hanging clothing, etc. If training workers is now some sort of "charity" to warrant donations, then mcdonalds is accomplishing the same goal, as they provide training and education as well... Consider if you donated hamburger buns and meat to mcdonalds so they could continue to "train and educate" their workers. It wouldnt hold water as an argument. The goal of goodwill is the maximize donations and eventually make profit and reinvest like any other coorperation. In this process they will destroy some aspects of local communities abilities to respond to their own needs. Some of these thrift stores either benefit homeless shelters or womens homes for abused/battered wives and families. Goodwill is the walmart of thrift store/charities and people should really consider their options in where to donate their clothing and understand the scope of goodwills business goals.

In my community, goodwill runs the programs for back to work early for the wsib and ei. Also, there is the job connect program which helps people get back into the job force who have gaps in their education or need skills updating...whereas they also provide a lot of esl programs and integration for immigrants too, most of the programs are (existing) community based and pretty well regarded by those who have used the services. I do think they try to maximize the donations value wise whenever possible, but when I donate a Seth Thomas or something, I am really hoping they get more than 2.29 for it. Compared to companies like Value village or (here) talize who give likely about 10% of the total revenue to any charity but claim charity status as the reason to donate there, these guys are saints. Salvation army has some good points too, but good will does similar things minus the relief work, but without the religious edge...which I am sure is a large reason for the missionary work to begin with, but that is another story. We live in a very disposeable society really, there are many companies that make money that has to be into the billions yearly from stuff people throw away or are willing to throw away.

I have to agree with bpigati, Nasty place to work, let alone to support through shopping or donating goods. Never seen thiem help-out a homeless person for shoes/food nor anything for that matter. Let alone Re-educate a sole. Goodwill used to be a nice non-profit organization, but as time gose on, the new breed on retail corparate pratices have come into full effect.

Goodwill is now where a lot of minor offenders work to do their 'community service'. I think it is somewhat bogus as that, as shelving items in a thrift store is of marginal benefit to the community. As far as job training goes there is some truth to what is stated above: As far as the "skills" goodwill teaches, most people working at goodwill learn everything they need to know in about a week. Goodwill in its old incarnation used to have more of a local impact. Now that so much of the donated goods are shipped out of the local area, this has become more limited. Goodwill used to supplement the wealth of a community through the generation of a secondary market for their goods - ie resellers. Via the resellers the income from the resale of donated goods circulated further through the local economies. Now a large % of the goods are shipped to central locations to be sold on their website. Nothing wrong with that, but it does reduce the amount of benefit seen to the local community. Most of the programs they run are also revenue generating. And all the workers in their retail stores are counted as part of their 'vocational training' - so the argument above about McDonald's does hold some water. Their average full-time worker makes less than $18,000/year (not a 'living wage'), while their executives pay eats up about 6% of their total income. Presently another good deal of the income goes to the expansion of their operation. They are working hard to open new retail stores - extending their reach to new communities, competing with other charities for donations. While Goodwill is a charity and a non-profit, there are usually local alternatives who provide a greater direct impact in the communities they serve.

goodwill is definitly raking in the profits. As stated above, they "cherry pick" anything that would generate more and more money on their website. I shop the website looking for interesting art. I also have donated a considerabe amount of goods every year, but stopped when i learned about the cherry picking. My purpose for donating nice usable items is in the hope that someone in need has the same equal opportunity to find something nice for themselves, not end up on an e-bay type auction site where a free donated items g can fetch up to thousands of dollars from competing dealers. Come on goodwill... what are you assuming? What "goodwill" is there in the overpriced, taxed twice garage sale crap you leave at the store....for people in need.....I no longer shop the store, all that press board gives me a headache.