A unique partnership between The Outreach Center (TOC) and Nationwide Marketing Group Member Bargain Basement Home Center is helping lower income families in the Morganton, NC, area find new appliances at affordable price points.

Founded in 2000 by Dr. Holly Johnson, TOC is a nonprofit that strives to fulfill its mission of empowering children and their families to “break the cycle of generational poverty.” TOC works to accomplish its goal by providing youth in the area education, opportunities, workforce development and hunger relief.

In May 2019, TOC opened the TOC Home Store, a retail location that gives residents in the Morganton area the ability to shop for new major household appliances from top-name brands at steep discounts, as well as a growing line of furniture. For its appliance inventory, TOC found a perfect partner in the Bargain Basement Home Center.

“I have known Holly’s husband, Jim, since our college days at Appalachian State,” says David Garner, owner of Bargain Basement Home Center. “Jim also does video production for my stores, and one day explained to me what they were doing with TOC Home Store. I felt like we could help with their mission, so we started a program of getting merchandise to them to resell.”

Bargain Basement Home Center is a two-store operation in Hickory and Charlotte, NC. The outfit offers a wide selection of new, open-box appliances for residential and commercial settings.

Garner consigns his merchandise to TOC at wholesale. Incoming inventory includes nearly all types of major household appliances, including refrigerators, ranges, washers and dryers, microwaves, dishwashers, window A/C units and dehumidifiers. The proceeds from those appliance sales are, in turn, used to help fund TOC programs.

“TOC Home Store sales help to keep our programs alive and moving forward,” explains Dr. Johnson. “We are ever so grateful to Dave for his friendship and all that he’s done to help us in our mission. He really does care about helping people. We are here to help families and children in need and to help break generational poverty. We couldn’t accomplish any of this without the support of our donors and volunteers like Dave.”