Goodwill NYNJ FAQs
Curious about where your donations go, how our stores work, why prices vary or what’s changing with Goodwill Insider? You’re in the right place.
Here are answers to the questions we hear most from shoppers, donors and community partners.
Mission, Money & Myths
Is Goodwill really a nonprofit?
Yes.
Goodwill NYNJ is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We don’t have owners or shareholders taking profits from the business.
Revenue from our stores supports our operations and our mission: helping people build skills, find jobs and advance in their careers.
Our stores operate like retail thrift stores, but the purpose behind them is different.
Why does Goodwill charge for things that were donated?
Our retail stores operate through a resale model rather than a direct distribution model.
We sell donated goods, and that revenue helps fund employment and career services for people with disabilities and other barriers to employment. At Goodwill NYNJ we help our neighbors find and keep jobs at the MTA, hospitals, and restaurants.
It also supports the work that happens behind the scenes: receiving donations, sorting merchandise, driving trucks, stocking racks, running registers and keeping our stores and donation centers operating.
We create paid jobs. Donated goods may come to us at no cost, but processing, transporting and selling them does not. We do not use volunteers in the store operations.
So when you buy a jacket, lamp or very specific ceramic rooster, you’re also helping fund our mission and real jobs.