Have you ever wondered what happens to your donation after you leave it at Deseret Industries? Whether it’s a bag of clothes, a set of dinner plates, or an old laptop, your donation takes a journey that impacts individuals and communities. 

Unloading and Sorting 

As soon as you drop off your donation at the dock, it’s sorted into one of four main categories: 

• Clothing: Includes all wearable items, which are inspected for quality before being priced and displayed or repurposed for humanitarian aid. 

• Small Household Goods: Covers items like dinner plates, stuffed animals, utensils, kitchen gadgets, and home decor, which are quickly rotated to meet demand or shared with other DI stores. 

• Large Household Items: Furniture such as tables, couches, and chairs, which are assessed for resale or redistributed to other locations with higher demand. 

• Electronics: Includes items like TVs, laptops, and other devices, which are tested for resale or responsibly recycled to recover valuable materials. 

Dock associates carefully assess your items to ensure they are placed in the right category.

What Happens to Clothing 

Clothing is sorted by quality and need. If the store requires more inventory, items are hung, priced, and displayed for sale. Unsold items are repurposed after a certain period as follows: 

• Baled for Humanitarian Efforts: Clothes are compressed into 900-1,000-pound bales and sent to DI stores with greater needs, donated to the Humanitarian Center, or sold by weight to support global aid and humanitarian projects. 

• Recycling: DI recycles a wide range of items, ensuring almost nothing goes to waste. Even items like worn socks are repurposed into rags or other materials. 

What Happens to Small Household Goods 

Small household goods—like kitchenware, decorations, and toys—follow a similar path. These items typically sell quickly in the stores. However, if one store has more than it needs, the items are shared with other locations that may have shortages. This “donation sharing” helps ensure all stores remain stocked and able to serve their communities. 

Stores like Deseret Industries in Glendale, Arizona, often receive truckloads of small household goods from other locations to meet local demand. If there is still a surplus of items after internal sharing, they are sold to third-party vendors for recycling or resale in other countries.

What Happens to Electronics 

Electronics are also handled with care. Usable items are priced and sold in stores, while surplus or unsellable electronics are recycled. Many electronics contain valuable metals, which are sold to vendors to generate funds that support DI’s job training program.

Job Training Through Donations 

Every donation that comes through DI supports more than just thrift shopping—it fuels DI’s job training program. Dock associates play a crucial role in the initial stages of item processing and gain valuable skills through their work. Each donated item goes through a four-step process

Why Your Donation Matters 

Every donation, no matter how small, contributes to DI’s mission. The process of receiving and preparing donations to be sold gives associates on-the-job training that can be transferred to future job opportunities. Even if a store cannot use an item, Deseret Industries ensures it’s shared, recycled, or repurposed to benefit others. 

As one employee explained, “Even when there’s a 30-car line on a Saturday, we’re grateful for every single donation. It all makes a difference.” 

Think DI First 

Donating to Deseret Industries is about more than just cleaning out your closet—it’s about creating opportunities, helping communities thrive, and giving items a second life. The next time you’re decluttering, think DI first—because your donation does so much more than you imagine.