Goodwill of Central Arizona

What Goodwill of Central Arizona does

Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona (GCNA; legal name Goodwill Industries of Central and Northern Arizona, Inc.) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1947 and headquartered at 2626 W. Beryl Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona, employing more than 3,800 people. The organization operates a dual-purpose social enterprise: more than 100 thrift retail stores generate revenue from donated goods that funds no-cost community mission services including career development, adult education, and veteran support. Geographic reach spans Central and Northern Arizona, Frederick and Carroll counties in Maryland (added via a 2020 merger with Goodwill Industries of Monocacy Valley), and the San Francisco Bay Area (added via a 2024 partnership with Goodwill San Francisco Bay).

Revenue streams span retail merchandise sales (standard stores, two clearance centers selling by the pound), e-commerce through shopgoodwill.com/phoenix, salvage and recycling, paid home pickup via a ReSupply partnership ($35 base fee), corporate/employer recruitment services, and tax-deductible monetary donations. Mission services include no-cost career coaching (delivered in-person and via MyCareerAdvisor.com), The Excel Center (a tuition-free adult charter high school for ages 18+ with on-site childcare and industry certifications), Spark Community Schools (a K-12 microschool serving LGBTQIA+ students and K-3rd graders with unique needs, in partnership with one•n•ten and Child Crisis Arizona), and a specialized Veteran Career Center co-located with a Disabled American Veterans service office.

GCNA's go-to-market combines direct-to-consumer retail (physical stores, e-commerce, donation drop-off, monitored containers), event-driven engagement (hiring events, mission tours, community fundraisers), and a sales-led Employer Engagement team matching Arizona employers with job seekers. The organization has invested in proprietary sustainability and circular-economy capabilities in 2025 — Sortile's textile-scanning and Refiberd's computer-vision textile grading (third-party integrations), the Circular Plastics Microfactory co-developed with Arizona State University, and the Dow-funded GoodFlex post-consumer plastic film recycling pilot — earning the 2025 City of Phoenix Environmental Excellence Award of Distinction and the Candid Platinum transparency seal. IT operations process more than five million retail transactions per year, and the Dell Reconnect partnership has recycled more than 588 million pounds of computer electronics since 2004.

Name

Goodwill of Central Arizona

Legal name

Goodwill Industries of Central and Northern Arizona, Inc.

Website

https://goodwillaz.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1947

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit operating 100+ thrift retail stores across Arizona, Maryland, and California whose donated-goods sales fund no-cost career services, adult education, and veteran support programs for community members facing employment barriers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Thrift Retail and Workforce Development

NAICS

Used Merchandise Retailers (459510), Used Merchandise Retailers (4595)

SIC

Retail-Miscellaneous Shopping Goods Stores (5940)

akta.pro primary industry

Donation, Consignment & Resale Coordination (HSAFAFAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Asset Recovery, Surplus & Decommissioning Services (EUAIANAD), Product Take-Back & Reverse Logistics Programs (EUAIANAA), Dropout Prevention, Alternative Education & Re-Engagement Nonprofits (BPAGADAL)

Keywords

• Thrift retail
• Nonprofit career services
• Adult education programs
• Textile recycling
• Donation processing

Headquarters

HQ city

Phoenix

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Retail Merchandise Sales: Revenue from selling donated goods at thrift stores. Items include clothing, furniture, electronics, household goods, and unique treasures. Includes standard retail stores and clearance centers selling items by the pound.
2. E-commerce Sales: Online sales through shopgoodwill.com/phoenix. E-commerce team lists and processes items including jewelry and unique items, generating packing and postage labels for sold items.
3. Home Pickup Services: Partnership with ReSupply for home pickup services. Paid service providing convenient, affordable pickup solution with professional haulers and flexible scheduling.
4. Monetary Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individuals supporting career and education programs. Donations allow provision of free access to resume assistance, interview skills training, and career coaching.
5. Salvage and Recycling: Revenue from items sold by the pound at Retail Operations Center or to salvage vendors. Materials that cannot be sold are recycled. Plastic film and rigid plastics processed for recycling partnerships.
6. Textile Grading Services: GCNA Textile Grading Model provides standardized, scalable approach to textile grading for partners across the Goodwill network. Creates sustainable revenue streams through strategic partnerships with key buyers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona operates a social-enterprise thrift retail business—collecting donated goods and reselling them through 100+ physical stores, clearance centers sold by the pound, and the shopgoodwill.com e-commerce platform. Retail proceeds fund no-cost community mission services including career development (resume help, digital skills training, job placement), adult high school education through The Excel Center, K-12 microschooling through Spark Community Schools, and veteran-specific career support at the Veteran Career Center.

Product overview

Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona is a 501(c)(3) non-profit thrift retailer operating with a dual-purpose model: retail operations that fund community mission services. The core product portfolio consists of physical Goodwill Retail Stores and the shopgoodwill.com e-commerce platform, complemented by Clearance Centers (the bins) selling items by the pound. Mission services are delivered through Career Services and MyCareerAdvisor.com online platform, with specialized Veteran Career Centers and educational programs (The Excel Center adult high school and Spark Community Schools K-12 microschool). Supporting services include home pickup, Dell Reconnect technology recycling, and an extensive donation center network. All retail operations fund the no-cost career and education services for community members.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Goodwill Retail Stores Physical thrift retail stores offering donated clothing, household goods, furniture, electronics, and unique treasures at affordable prices; revenue funds the organization's no-cost career and education mission services.
• shopgoodwill.com E-commerce Store

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 100 million pounds diverted from landfills annually
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

22 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Dell Technologies - Dell ReconnectcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2004Partnership since 2004 providing free technology recycling for consumers. Consumers can drop off used computer equipment at Goodwill locations to be responsibly recycled. More than 588 million pounds of computer electronics recycled through the program since inception. Dell Reconnect accepts any brand of computer equipment in any condition. Supports Goodwill's mission by providing job training and opportunities while supporting Dell's closed-loop process for materials like plastics reused in new computer parts.
• ReSupplycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFounded by veterans in 2015, ReSupply offers 24-48 hour in-home pickup of household items. Licensed and insured haulers remove items from anywhere in the home including stairs, with professional disassembly available. All items donated to Goodwill. Goodwill hosts fundraiser partnerships with ReSupply for school and community organization donation drives.
• City of PhoenixcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to help Phoenix residents declutter through curbside pickup of unneeded clothing, shoes, and linens. Supports environmental goals and community mission services.
• Town of GilbertmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGilbert and Goodwill partnered to launch Arizona's first remotely-monitored donation containers in September 2025. Containers available 24/7 for clothing and small household items at Discovery Park and near Higley Rd & Ocotillo Rd intersection. Containers use upcycled shipping containers and solar power.
• Child Crisis ArizonamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership helps Arizona parents provide better quality of life by connecting them with Goodwill's career services and resources to obtain and advance in family-sustaining jobs.
• Girl Scouts Cactus Pine CouncilminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual partnership for shoe and item collection to prevent materials from going to landfills. Girl Scouts and Goodwill work together to divert nearly 200 million pounds of materials from AZ landfills annually.
• PepsiCominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPepsiCo is a strong supporter of Goodwill and its philanthropy efforts. Partnership supports community building initiatives.
• Comfort Systems USAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerComfort Systems USA provides innovative solutions to businesses and organizations. Proud supporter of Goodwill with partnership supporting community mission.
• Arizona State University (ASU)coreTechnology or IntegrationPartnership to develop the Circular Plastics Microfactory, a first-of-its-kind approach to material recovery and remanufacturing. ASU and Goodwill collaborated to rethink how discarded materials are collected, processed, and transformed into new products. Keeps materials and manufacturing local, reducing reliance on distant supply chains.
• ISAIC (Industrial Sewing and Innovation Center)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to establish repair and reuse pathways for well-worn or damaged clothing. Combines GCNA's expertise in textile collection, sorting, and recirculation with ISAIC's accredited sewing curriculum capabilities. Pilot project aims to divert repairable textiles from landfill while advancing workforce development.
• SortilecoreTechnology or IntegrationSortile's textile-scanning technology identifies and records fiber composition, enabling accurate sorting, tracking repair needs, and supporting proper next-life uses of garments. Technology partner for circular textile recovery initiatives.
• RefiberdcoreTechnology or IntegrationRefiberd's AI technology includes cameras and AI software complementing manual grading by accelerating and scaling textile evaluation. Helps determine reuse eligibility, detect textiles suitable for repair, and identify materials for recycling pathways. Implementation funded through Arizona Department of Environmental Quality's Recycling Grant Awards.
• Accelerating CircularitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership in sustainability and circularity. Goodwill participates in educational trips and initiatives focused on textile recovery and circular economy.
• Arizona ForwardminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMember of Arizona Forward, an organization focused on advancing sustainability and environmental excellence in Arizona.
• Circular ArizonaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership promoting circular economy initiatives in Arizona through collaboration and shared vision.
• Disabled American Veterans (DAV)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDAV Veteran Service Office available at the Veteran Career Center two days per week (Tuesdays and Thursdays 10AM-2PM) for walk-in veterans seeking assistance with benefits and career services.
• one•n•tenmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with one•n•ten to serve LGBTQIA+ students in middle and high school through Spark Community Schools campus. Students learn in safe and supportive environment with small class sizes.
• Child Crisis Arizona (Education)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Child Crisis Center in Mesa to serve K-3rd grade students with unique needs through Spark Community Schools. Provides meaningful educational opportunities and resources to ignite love of learning.
• Thrive Real Estate GroupcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorExclusive vendor for Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona real estate opportunities. Handles site plans, demos, area maps, co-tenants, traffic and parking inquiries. Contact: 602-730-3261 or [email protected]
• RejucoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerReju collaborates with Goodwill Industries International and WM to collect and remanufacture discarded textiles into new fabric materials. Less than 1% of cloth fiber products are made from recycled materials - Reju is working to change this. Goodwill supports textile-to-textile circularity through collection and resale partnerships.
• Goodwill Industries of Monocacy ValleycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional partner serving Frederick and Carroll counties. Merged with GCNA in 2020. Operates stores and donation centers with Veteran Services Center bringing local providers together to serve veterans and families.
• Goodwill of the San Francisco BaycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional partner since 2024. Founded in 1916, operates nearly 30 stores and donation centers with mission services in the Bay Area. Offers career and training services including wellness program. Shares mission of equipping individuals facing barriers to employment with skills needed for higher-paying jobs.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Goodwill Industries International: Federation umbrella for all regional Goodwills. GCNA is a member Goodwill and shares the mission, brand, shopgoodwill.com e-commerce platform, and many programs (Dell Reconnect, Excel Center licensing) with the federation, making it the closest comparable organisation.
• Savers / Value Village: Largest for-profit thrift chain in North America with hundreds of stores buying and reselling donated goods. Directly comparable business model (donation intake, by-the-pound outlets, retail), with category overlap in secondhand apparel and household goods.
• The Salvation Army: Long-established 501(c)(3) operating Family Stores that sell donated goods to fund adult rehabilitation, workforce, and social programs. Most mission-comparable peer — same donation-to-mission-funded model and similar store footprint philosophy.
• Arc Thrift Stores: Nonprofit thrift chain operated by Arc chapters serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Closely mirrors GCNA's nonprofit-retail-funded-mission model at smaller scale.
• Deseret Industries (LDS Church): Thrift and reuse arm of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, operating donation-driven thrift stores that fund job-training and rehabilitation programs — directly comparable nonprofit/retail/social-mission model.
• Habitat for Humanity ReStores: Nonprofit home-goods resale stores operated by Habitat affiliates across North America. Comparable in operating donated-goods retail that funds community programming (housing rather than workforce, but same operating model).
• Buffalo Exchange: For-profit resale clothing chain with buy-sell-trade model across multiple US cities. Closest for-profit comp in secondhand apparel, competing for similar value-conscious and vintage-seeking consumers.

Emerging players

• Year Up: Workforce-development nonprofit serving young adults with training, employer partnerships, and stipends. Directly comparable mission-services side of GCNA's career-services program, similar employer-engagement model.
• Per Scholas: National tech-focused workforce-development nonprofit providing tuition-free training (similar to GCNA's Google IT certification and computer-skills tracks) and employer connections for underserved job seekers.
• Reju: Textile-to-textile recycling partner with GCNA, Goodwill Industries International, and WM. Comparable circular-economy / textile-remanufacturing activity and emerging EPR-driven reuse revenue stream relevant to GCNA's microfactory and GoodFlex programs.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/GoodwillAZ
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/goodwill-of-central-and-northern-arizona
• Instagraminstagram.com/goodwillaz
• TikToktiktok.com/@goodwillaz
• Xx.com/GoodwillAZ

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Goodwill of Central Arizona