About Seattle Goodwill
Founded in 1923, Seattle Goodwill is driven by a mission to provide free job training and education to those in need, helping change people’s lives for the better. The non-profit organization provides quality, effective employment training, and basic education to individuals experiencing significant barriers to economic opportunity.
Seattle Goodwill operates five Job Training Centers, 24 retail stores, and over 40 donation sites in King, Snohomish, Skagit, Whatcom, and Kitsap County. The charity employs over 2,000 people and serves over 6,000 people annually.
Fundraising Need
Seattle Goodwill offers services like work readiness classes that focus on helping adults develop and refresh their workplace skills, such as math, computer skills, and English language courses; and vocational training, which focuses on skill-building for select fields, like retail, customer service, and logistics.
These programs are funded entirely by financial donations and the sale of donated items in its stores and online.
eBay for Charity Solution: Direct Selling
From their first listing in 2002, Seattle Goodwill saw their higher value donations selling on eBay for 10 to 100 times their in-store price tag. Today the nonprofit curates its online inventory from across its 24 retail locations, listing about 600 new items a day and employing 45 people to support its online charity shop.
Their sell-through rate on eBay is typically 85 percent or higher, and Seattle Goodwill lists its higher value items, like jewelry, musical instruments, collectables and designer fashion, on eBay, garnering an average selling price of $40 or higher.
eBay provides Seattle Goodwill a means to reach millions of shoppers and supporters across the country and the world.
Impact
Seattle Goodwill makes it possible for people who have barriers to finding a job or staying in a job learn skills to become independent and support their families. For example, the organization supports those who may have physical or learning challenges, those rebuilding their lives after incarceration, and those who have relocated to the U.S. and face language or skills barriers to employment.
Learnings & Benefits
- Items sell on eBay for 10-100 percent higher than in-store. For example, items that may be priced in store for $10 or $20, can garner $100, $200 or even thousands of dollars on eBay.
- The eBay for Charity ribbon makes it easy for people to identify Seattle Goodwill as a nonprofit organization, and shopping those items directly supports their mission.
- Because eBay reimburses fees for charity listings, proceeds from Seattle Goodwill’s charity sales on eBay directly help those in the community.
Final Thoughts
“eBay provides us with a very strong platform. It gives us the tools to sell very easily. And if you are a shopper, it’s easy to shop on eBay. Selling provides an opportunity for people who want to help the community, find a good bargain in our site, and at the same time, help somebody get on their feet,” said Amina Ahnach, E-Commerce Manager at Seattle Goodwill.
