Las Vegas-area residents see toll from Goodwill bankruptcy
Have you noticed your Goodwill drop-off truck has disappeared? You’re not alone.
The nonprofit organization is making changes due to its Chapter 11 status. Goodwill of Southern Nevada filed for bankruptcy in August, citing high operating costs, an increase in debt and a dip in retail sales.
Sean Corbett, vice president of marketing and communications, said the nonprofit had expanded by 13 stores over five years, an aggressive plan embarked upon by the previous leadership. It was a time when stores such as Macy’s and Sears were seeing their futures at risk, and the number of in-store shoppers was decreasing as more shopped online.
“To exacerbate things, another ingredient in this recipe that led to Chapter 11, the previous leadership also bought, by way of bonds, three of our stores. Which meant we now had a three mortgages to pay, along with overhead costs (associated with ownership),” he said. “ … We were no longer viable, long term, to keep all of this going.”
It closed three stores and eliminated 14 of its 24 neighborhood drop-off sites. The remaining 10 sites, plus its 17 stores, make for 27 places where donations are accepted.
In Summerlin, Sarah Jones said she was happy the drop-off site near her, at 11720 W. Charleston Blvd., had not gone away. She and her husband donate to Goodwill whenever their young children outgrow clothes or have unused toys.
They also drop off small household items and random pieces of furniture. Smith said if she was required to drive a long distance to give to Goodwill, “I don’t know that I would do it.”
Near MountainView Hospital, the number of Goodwill donations has shot up about 50 percent, after the closure of a sister site one exit north.
Goodwill Select was an attempt to have a small retail footprint during the five-year plan. It was closed. Henderson’s Goodwill-linked botique store Deja Blue, 10624 S. Eastern Ave., was a twin to Summerlin’s and expected to also “do fantastic.” However, it never met expectations, likely due to competition, and closed, Corbett said. But in the Summerlin area there was only one main Goodwill store, at 9385 W. Flamingo Road, to compete with Deja Blue.
“So, it may be the dynamic of saturation,” Corbett said on why the Henderson Deja Blue closed and Summerlin’s remains open.
The economic downturn was still affecting Las Vegas’ economy, Corbett said.
“We’re still hunkering down from that, plus we have a new (U.S.) president who is unlike any other and who sends messages (that lead to) uncertainty in the world,” Corbett said. “When people feel good, they open up their wallets and they spend. They’re spending on vacations and home improvements, yes, but this downturn is still affecting the brick-and-mortars, the general retailers.”
Goodwill had tried massive discounts to drive more people into its stores, he said.
“When you discount something by 50 percent, now you’ve lost 50 percent of its total value,” he said. “If it’s worth 10 bucks, we want to get 10 bucks for it, if at all possible, because that funds our (mission), to get unemployed people jobs. … We’re here to lift a person out of that cycle of need and get them out there. As those donations come in and we come out of this Chapter 11, the money to fulfill that mission will be coming from all the stores. That’s the part of the story we want people to know.”
Contact Jan Hogan at jhogan@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2949.