MENASHA, Wis. (WFRV) – Goodwill Industries of North Central Wisconsin (NCW) announced it will be requiring shoppers to wear face coverings or masks in all of its 27 retail stores and training centers starting July 20.

According to Goodwill NCW, its Outlet Store in Appleton, which reopened on July 15, will also be abiding by the face-covering policy starting on July 20.

Goodwill NCW President and CEO Chris Hess said, “As an essential human services organization with a retail operation that fuels our mission, it’s important for us to do our part to slow the spread in our communities.”

Goodwill NCW shared that the National Retail Federation released a statement on July 15 encouraging all retailers to adopt a nationwide policy requiring customers to wear face coverings or masks to protect the health and well-being of their teams, customers, and partners during the coronavirus pandemic.

Goodwill NCW added that its retail store and training center team members will work with customers who come to the store without a mask to find a solution and customers who cannot wear face-coverings due to a medical condition will be accommodated.

Hess continued, “Our top priority throughout this pandemic has been and always will continue to be to protect the health and safety of our team members, customers and communities.”

This news follows the recent announcements that Kroger, Target, Walmart and Sam’s Club stores will also be implementing mask mandates.