Goodwill Industries of Lower SC
Three JEDA bond issues over the past five years have helped create 250 new jobs and a wealth of opportunity for people facing economic and physical challenges in the Lowcountry.
The $24 million in JEDA-secured financing went to Goodwill Industries of Lower South Carolina Inc., which, when current plans are completed, will have used them to build a total of six stores, a community service center and a distribution center. The first issuance, in 2005, was for $7.6 million and was used to acquire three stores: one in Mount Pleasant and two in Charleston (West Ashley and James Island.) "That created more than 50 new jobs," said Robert Smith, CEO of Goodwill Industries.
A $16.6 million bond issuance two years later was used to refinance those stores and create a community service center and a distribution center, resulting in 114 new jobs. That was followed by a bond issue for $24 million which will refinance all the existing facilities plus fund the opening of three new stores in Sumter, Conway and Summerville.
"In addition to creating jobs – and the opportunity for people to donate clothing and household goods and purchase them inexpensively – the JEDA bonds have helped Goodwill secure its own future," Smith said.
"They have allowed us to purchase our own property, instead of leasing, which helps us secure our revenues and spend less on facilities. We can stay in the same location, instead of moving, and we can more efficiently serve those communities according to our mission," the Goodwill Industries executive said.
Economic efficiencies are a hallmark of Goodwill's nationwide success in helping provide job training and jobs for people with disabilities, the homeless, veterans facing special challenges, and displaced workers. "Over 90 cents of every dollar that Goodwill generates goes back into programs and services, and Goodwill is South Carolina's largest employer of people with disabilities," Smith said.
Statewide, Goodwill Industries operates 19 retail stores, and in 2009, provided services to more than 20,000 people and placed nearly a thousand people into new jobs.