A: While Goodwill is a social enterprise, the organization’s mission is to provide free job training, education, and employment services to people with disabilities and disadvantages. We can only do that if we charge for the items we sell. The prices are determined by a variety of factors: First, what can we afford to charge in order to pay our employees a fair wage, provide them with healthcare, pay the rent, utilities, and keep our business and mission services operational. Second, we look at what other thrift stores and/or discount retailers in our area charging and try our best to make sure our prices are similar, if not lower, in most categories. Finally, the economy impacts our prices. When we are in the midst of a recession for example, and the price of gas, supplies, and wages are increasing, we may need to adjust our pricing to ensure we can continue to afford the resources required to keep our charitable agency functioning efficiently while fulfilling our critical mission.