Tip you can pass on to your Teachers and Administrators: Avoid tariffs and help your schools dollars go further

Companies that import manufactured goods from overseas are likely to be saddled with much higher tariffs going forward. This can include anything from school supplies to toys to maintenance supplies.

So classroom teachers have more motivation than ever to consider obtaining goods from a gifts-in-kind organization. Why?

Because the merchandise available from a gifts-in-kind organization is already in the U.S., donated by a manufacturer, distributor or retailer that is looking to clear out overstocks and excess inventory. If tariffs had been assessed, they will have already been paid by the company, not the consumer.

There are several of these organizations across the U.S., and one of the oldest and largest is NAEIR, the National Association for the Exchange of Industrial Resources. It’s based in Galesburg, Illinois, but has national reach thanks to its ability to receive donations at its 300,000-square-foot warehouse and distribute them through its online catalog and established delivery systems.

Nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations, community organizations and social service agencies, along with teachers in public and private schools, are eligible for membership in NAEIR. That membership entitles them to receive merchandise at no cost, aside from a nominal handling fee. The online catalog makes ordering simple.

Gifts-in-kind merchandise can be used to meet any need – for example, making sure a student has a warm sweatshirt for school or filling care packages for domestic and international mission trips. However, the  merchandise must be used to fulfill the organization’s mission or supplement classroom supplies. It may not be sold, traded or bartered.

Membership in NAEIR’s Teacher Program is free and helps stretch out-of-pocket expenses by providing materials such as arts and crafts items, pens and pencils, highlighters, scissors, incentive items like stickers and so much more. In most cases, participants in this program pay less than a third of what the products would cost even at the lowest prices available at deep discount stores

Donations to NAEIR come from dozens of companies as diverse as Crayola, McMaster-Carr, Avery Products, Newell Brands, and Cutter & Buck. Whatever a nonprofit or teacher needs, they’re likely to find it in the NAEIR catalog.

 What motivates companies to donate to gifts-in-kind organizations? It may be to reduce storage costs, clear up space in their warehouse, keep unsold merchandise out of landfills or fulfill their philanthropic missions to give back to their communities. It’s also a way for companies to streamline their donation process. They can receive a tax deduction for donated items without having to tie up their own employees’ time searching for worthy groups or shipping items to multiple locations.

On average, NAEIR members acquire more than $18,000 worth of free products per year for their organizations. With gifts-in-kind organizations, nonprofits and teachers can both spend less on items they need while also providing more help to the communities and students they serve.

Gary C. Smith is the president and chief executive officer of the National Association for the Exchange of Industrial Resources (NAEIR), the oldest, largest gifts-in-kind organization in the U.S. NAEIR receives donations of excess inventory from American corporations and distributes merchandise to a membership base of more than 13,000. It has collected and redistributed more than $3 billion worth of new, donated supplies and equipment since its founding in 1977. Visit www.NAEIR.org or call 800-562-0955.