TERRE HAUTE — Slumping retail sales — especially at specialty clothing stores — are being felt at local thrift shops that rely on donations to stay in business.
“Donations are just kind of slow,” said Bill Tennis, executive director of Wabash Valley Goodwill Industries. “We just wonder if [people are] not buying quite as much new stuff as they might have in [the past] and, consequently, they are not donating quite as much stuff to the Goodwill.”
The U.S. Commerce Department reported six straight months of declining retail sales at the end of last year and big declines in January at some specialty clothing stores.
Gap, the No. 1 retail clothing store chain, reported a 23-percent drop in sales in January compared with the same time last year. Abercrombie and Fitch, another specialty clothing store, reported a drop of 20 percent in January.
“We want to remind people that it’s very easy to donate things that might be in your closet that you may no longer wear or haven’t worn for years,” Tennis said.
With unemployment in Vigo and surrounding counties topping 9 percent, many potential donors are facing tough times, Tennis said. According to the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, January unemployment in Vigo County was at 9.6 percent. In Sullivan County, the rate hit 10 percent, and in Clay County, it reached 11 percent.
On Tuesday, despite the tough economic times, many people arrived at the Goodwill Industries donation drop-off on South Third Street in Terre Haute. Several of those people said they were in the process of spring cleaning and have not reduced their contributions to Goodwill because of the economic downturn.
Susan Spice of Terre Haute was among those who brought items to Goodwill on Tuesday. Spice said she’s making an effort not to follow a family tradition of keeping large amounts of “stuff” in storage around her home. “I decided I’m not going to do that,” she said with a laugh.
Nina Sackett of Paris also brought a carload of materials to Goodwill’s donation drop-off. Each spring — and every time her family moves to a new home — they make big donations to Goodwill, she said.
Donations allow the Wabash Valley Goodwill to employ around 90 people, Tennis said, adding that as unemployment has risen, more people have come to Goodwill seeking employment. The current drop in donations is making it difficult to find work for those folks, he said.
While several people arrived Tuesday to make clothing and other donations to Goodwill, others were there taking advantage of the charitable organization’s free recycling program. Goodwill accepts plastics, newspaper, cardboard, metals, even large household items such as stoves and washers and dryers for recycling, Tennis noted.
“By taking advantage of the free [recycling] opportunity, you’re helping people in our community with their employment and, generally, they are people with stumbling blocks to their employment,” he said.
While the recycling operation is often very busy, the core of Goodwill’s business revolves around the sale of donated clothing and other household items, Tennis said. Donations to Goodwill are tax-deductible, and contribution receipts are available at the drop-off point, he noted.
Goodwill Industries operates stores in Terre Haute, Brazil, Sullivan and Greencastle in Indiana and Paris and Robinson in Illinois. Donations are accepted at each location seven days a week. Recyclable materials are accepted only at the Terre Haute location at 2702 S. Third St.
Meanwhile, to encourage people to bring items to the Goodwill store in Terre Haute, TGI Fridays is offering free appetizer gift certificates, while supplies last, to anyone who makes a donation, Tennis said. Friday’s is donating a “couple of thousand” appetizers to encourage donations, starting today, he said.
Arthur Foulkes can be reached at (812) 231-4232 or arthur.foulkes@tribstar.com.
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