Goodwill plans to launch a retail store and donation center in the former Office Depot location at 10455 Tamiami Trail N. in the Naples Park area.
“Subject to permitting and construction time frames, we are targeting an opening date on or about Oct. 1,” said Carolyn Johnson, senior vice president of mission services and development for Goodwill Industries of Southwest Florida Inc.
Last November, the longtime Office Depot store permanently closed its19,000-square-foot freestanding store built in 2006 on the west side of U.S. 41 between 104th and 105th Avenue North in North Naples. In a May 2020 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Boca Raton-based office supply company announced a restructuring plan that includes closing and consolidating distribution facilities and retail stores for a reduction of at least 13,000 employees by the end of 2023.
Goodwill’s new North Naples store is not the only regional project in the works by the nonprofit organization that employs more than 900 in its five-county service area of Collier, Lee, Charlotte, Hendry and Glades. Goodwill plans to open a new attended donation center later this month in Bonita Bay Plaza, the retail center anchored by Publix and Rural King on the northeast corner of U.S. 41 and West Terry Street in Bonita Springs. The local agency also plans a “new” retail store and donation center in west Cape Coral in the second quarter of 2023 along with an expanded community resource center in partnership with Hodges University, Johnson said.
“We are constantly evaluating the needs and growth in our five-county market, including Lee and Collier counties, and anticipate that additional or expanded retail stores and donation centers will be identified over the next few years,” she said. “The continuing but rapidly accelerating growth of the Southwest Florida market has had a noticeable demand for not only enhanced and additional Goodwill retail and donation centers, but also the demand for skilled employees for today’s in-demand jobs.”
Goodwill’s community resource centers at eight of its area stores provide free employment services and digital training in order to upskill job seekers and workers wanting to advance their careers, helping close the skills gap between employee and employer, Johnson said. “These services are free and available to anyone in our community in need of our services,” she said.
Revenue from Goodwill’s retail and donation centers helps support Goodwill’s programs and services in the local region with 90 cents of every dollar raised supporting its mission services, Johnson said.
