Have you visited onlinegoodwill.com? It’s the landing page for Goodwill Industries of Middle Tennessee’s Internet auction shopping site. Onlinegoodwill.com is part of the larger site, shopgoodwill.com, the first and only Internet auction site run by a nonprofit organization. Since its first online auction of donations in August 1999, it has earned $100 million in support of the Goodwill® mission of helping people find jobs and build careers. Revenues provide job training programs and other community-based services to people with disabilities, those who lack education or job experience, and others facing challenges to finding employment.
"It has been really satisfying to see our Goodwill's e-commerce team grow," said Tammy Glass, the vice president of financie for Goodwill Industries of Middle Tennessee. "What was an idea in 2001 has evolved into a full-scale department. When we finally got a handle on recognizing many of the more valuable items that were donated to us, and started selling those items online, we knew our donors were pleased that we saw the value and merit in their donations," she added.
Jim Gibbons, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries International said, “shopgoodwill.com helps Goodwill fuel economic development in local communities. shopgoodwill.com is just one way Goodwill uses technology to benefit its mission. After more than 10 years in operation, the site has helped Goodwill create jobs so people can earn paychecks and fuel the economy in their local communities. The Goodwill employees who administer shopgoodwill.com learn marketable skills including computer knowledge, customer service, and photography skills, as well as processing, stocking and fulfillment systems.
“Eighty-three percent of Goodwill revenues fund our mission of helping people find employment and strengthen our communities,” said Gibbons. “shopgoodwill.com allows Goodwill employees to build their skills to prepare them for the next steps in building fulfilling careers.”
Shopping and bidding on shopgoodwill.com is free and easy. More than 576,000 registered users from all 50 states and many other countries browse, bid and buy on the auction site. There are more than 30,000 items posted on the site at any given time, and consumers have bought more than 5.6 million donated items to date. With 169 categories of items, from jewelry to antiques, musical instruments to high-end purses, and toys to electronics, consumers can find the items for sale on shopgoodwill.com to suit their likes and needs.
The most expensive item sold on onlinegoodwill.com was an early 19th century painting by Ellsworth Woodward, which sold for $7,500 in early 2009. Some of the more unique items sold on shopgoodwill.com include a 1927 Martin 5 K soprano ukulele, a Mercedes and a Picasso etching. The highest priced item sold on shopgoodwill.com was a Frank Weston Benson watercolor painting for $165,002, sold by Goodwill Industries of the Columbia Willamette (Portland, OR).
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