This job never gets old because every day it's something new."
Sarah Hindmon has gotten used to discovering the unusual. One box she recently opened was full of porcelain baby doll parts. Sometimes she finds teeth, both of the childhood and gold variety, tucked away in old jewelry boxes.
The e-business manager for Chattanooga Goodwill Industries says, "This job never gets old because every day it's something new."
Shopgoodwill.com was born 15 years ago in California when employees saw the Web as a way to make more money off unique donations. Chattanooga began selling on the website eight years ago.
The Chattanooga operation, housed in the East Brainerd Goodwill shop, has 10 employees to research, photograph, list and ship the items. Unusual or valuable items are flagged by the managers and staff of 14 local stores and sent to Hindmon's crew.
"Whenever a truck comes ... I'll run out there. You're going to see me be the first one to hit that truck, because I want to see what we've got," Hindmon said, noting that the entire staff gets excited on truck day.
Some recent high-dollar auctions included a Daughters of the American Revolution ribbon and engraved membership pins, a blue fox-fur coat from Finland, and a large hand-painted Asian bowl. "We have everything you can think of in terms of collectibles, high-end clothing, jewelry and ... musical instruments," Hindmon said.
Although anyone can bid on the items, she said the organization has a loyal following of Chattanooga customers who enjoy being able to pick up their items and avoid shipping costs.
Hindmon said she often fields questions from people who wonder if the e-business gets all of the good stuff.
"That would really be impossible because of the vast amount of goods that come into our organization," she said.
Goodwill wants to make the most out of every donation it receives, and selling online allows that, Hindmon said, adding that more than half of her staff attended Goodwill's job readiness program and she is excited by the fact that online success has created more jobs.
"We will keep people employed, keep people busy, improve their quality of life, which improves our community as a whole," she said.
The business usually has about 500 items listed on the site; once it topped out at 900. The organization also has approximately 200 listings on eBay and 6,000 books on Amazon.com.
"I could make a list a thousand items long or more that I have seen in my three years working here. It's just unreal to me. I'm so fascinated every day," Hindmon said.
Randall Leslie, Amanda Willis, Sarah Hindmon and Kimberly Nelson, from left, sort items to research and list in the e-business division of Chattanooga Goodwill Industries.