2 min read February 2023 — Jose Luis, COO of Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont, sat down with Invest: to discuss the role of the organization in the wider Charlotte MSA community, how its services impact the area and plans going forward for further expansion, development and reimagination of retail sites.
What have been some of the key highlights for you and your office in the past 12 months?
2022 was a big growth year for us. We launched an initiative to open 25 new stores by 2025, and last year we opened six new stores from all across the region. One is a former Lidl store that had around 36,000 square feet, which included a small cafe operated by a third-party vendor as well as a store within our store, The GRID, which is our technology store. In addition to those six, we also relocated our Shelby store, where we also opened up our technology store, The GRID, within our traditional store, and another café operated by a third-party vendor. Those seven traditional stores plus the two The GRID stores, as well as the cafes operating within our Rockingham and Shelby stores, have provided a lot of activity. We also opened what we are calling community rooms, which are spaces for community members to reserve space for whatever they need done. We are also hosting our own events there. It’s a great way to connect with and provide a service for our community in ways we traditionally haven’t.
We are continuing our growth, and with that growth we are looking at areas we have not previously served. Rockingham is a perfect example of that.
How are you strategizing around the current market?
I’ll start with my own area, which is store growth. We have seen some significant impacts where we shifted from plastic bags to going paperless and offering recyclable bags for our customers. It was seamless, but it took us over six months to receive shipments of bags we needed. We also had supply chain challenges in fixtures, glass, doors, HVAC units and more that saw delays. We had an amazing construction group that worked with us to find solutions. For example, if we needed three large units with a 24-week delay, could we get a few smaller units instead to shorten the time frame? We went through a lot, but working together and thinking outside the box made it happen.
Have you experienced any labor issues?
I am glad you brought this point up because one of our main focuses for the past two years is increasing our minimum wage for our team members. In 2022 we raised our minimum wage to $13.50 per hour, and this year we moved to $15 per hour, which was initially our goal to be met by 2025. It was important for us to be in line with where the rest of the economy is going, and compensation has been playing a central role in how we can make a difference in our communities by helping out our team members. They are the ones helping us achieve the revenue we use to give back to the community through services we provide. They deserve it. The culture we have built is vital, as well, which is why we’re focusing on leading differently. We are bringing in more fun, compassion and love into our culture so it fits our holistic impact.
How are you watching Charlotte transform?
Charlotte has changed significantly. I came to the Charlotte area in December of 2006, the Duke Energy building wasn’t here – there was a lot that wasn’t here, actually. I believe all of this growth has been better for Charlotte in the long run. We have seen a focus on the financial sector, but we have also seen a shift beginning to expand into healthcare and other segments such as retail, which is getting bigger. Those focus areas allow people to have a more diverse program to play with in areas that are of interest to them.
We are looking everywhere for areas we can provide better services for the community in terms of expansion. It runs the gamut; if you look at 2022, we opened one store after the other, and it was all centered around what a community needed and how we could fulfill their needs. If you look at our territory, we have been primarily focused on the Charlotte MSA, and we are beginning to expand further out where we have not traditionally served before.
How are you noticing your growth and perceptions evolving?
One of the things we will have going forward is a new prototype store at the end of 2023. It came to be when we connected folks throughout different positions and roles within Goodwill. I wanted to include employees from every facet of our organization because of their experience with our stores and their connections to their communities, and I wanted to use their insights, knowledge and experience to find best practices for serving our communities going forward. This prototype will focus on making the store experience better for team members, donors, customers and participants. It’s about changing those perceptions and growing as an organization in a way that best serves our community. It includes a tower element to help people find our stores easier, the store operation is more efficient, and the donor experience is better thought out.
What are your priorities looking ahead?
Thrift retail in particular will continue to grow. As experts expect a recession, we don’t know what will happen, but the services we provide our community through our retail stores will be all the more important. Our main focus will continue to be workforce development and career growth for members of our community, supporting our community and allowing our retail locations to provide additional services in those communities.
For more information, visit:
