As Black Friday and Cyber Monday kicked off yet another big holiday shopping season, we were happy to see a new retail concept pop up – and from a company rooted in giving back to the community year round. A Goodwill store in Charlotte, NC opened a “pop-up shop” with a new name (The GW), boutique-style shopping experience and their best selection of donated brand names. In addition to creating new opportunities for employees and testing promotional tactics to attract millennials, this initiative was part of a collaboration with the city to test the viability of a local shopping center for other businesses.
Although the pop-up store was a special, stand-alone event, it is a great story of conscious business in action. Despite already having a well-known brand, an established business model, and non-profit support, Goodwill is still focused on finding new and better ways to help their employees, community, and customers. We love seeing how this retail innovation and business growth stem from the authentic values and mission of Goodwill. Not only has the desire and mission to give back and support the social good fueled their actions, along the way it’s also created a successful, sustainable business.