Do Big-Box Stores Like Lowe's, Target and Staples Donate to Fundraisers?

Most big-box stores route their giving through grants or store-level programs, not free prizes you can request. Of the three in the question, only Target donates something you could raffle: gift cards, requested at your local store. Lowe's gives Community Impact Grants to renovate community spaces. Staples helps schools through shopper programs such as Classroom Rewards. Neither Lowe's nor Staples describes a gift card or product donation you can apply for.

That pattern holds across most large retailers. The useful question is not "does this store donate?" but "what does it actually give, and who decides?" This guide sets out exactly what each chain's own giving pages say, sorted into four kinds of answer.

Store-by-store answers

Every detail here comes from the retailer's own giving page. Each store links to its donor page in our directory. Programs change, so check the company's page before you ask.

The four kinds of answer

1. A gift card or product you can request

This is the answer most raffle organizers hope for, and fewer chains give it than you might expect. Target says 501(c)(3)s and accredited schools may go to any store to request a Target GiftCard. You fill in the request form, print it, and bring it in with an IRS letter. Donations run February through December as funding permits, average $25–50, and are capped at $500 per year per agency. Stores typically take up to 30 days to respond. Target does not donate merchandise.

Big 5 Sporting Goods limits its giving to store eCards for fundraisers, through its online system only. Dick's Sporting Goods says donations may include coupons or in-store gift certificates and can support a specific event or an individual youth sports team. Books-A-Million donates a $20 gift card, but through its corporate office by email, not your local store. Wawa offers soft pretzels, Wawa water, or a gift basket of Wawa items and coupons for a silent auction. Each organization is eligible for one in-kind donation per calendar year, and your event must be at least 3 weeks away.

2. A decision at the local store

Trader Joe's says each store has a designated Donation Coordinator. Food and beverage requests go in writing, on your letterhead with your tax ID, delivered to the store at least three weeks ahead. The limit is one donation per year per organization from the whole company, not one per store. This suits a volunteer meal or a bake-sale table better than a prize table.

3. A grant, not a prize

Several of the biggest names give money for projects rather than items for an event.

• Walmart stores, Sam's Clubs and distribution centers award local cash grants of $250 to $5,000. You apply through a Spark Good account, verified by Walmart's partner Deed, to a facility serving your area. Eligible groups are 501(c)(3) public charities, government entities, and K-12 public or nonprofit private schools. Volunteer fire companies and other non-charities such as 501(c)(4)s are not eligible.
• Lowe's Community Impact Grants fund physical renovations of community spaces such as parks, food pantries and firehouses. The public nominates a project during an annual window, which ran from February to March in 2026. Grants go to a local nonprofit, school or municipality, and projects must be within 30 miles of a Lowe's store. Lowe's describes no product or gift card program for events.
• The Home Depot lists Veteran Housing Grants, Retool Your School and Path to Pro Grants as its community grant programs.

If your project is a playground or a garden, a grant may be the better ask. If you need raffle baskets next month, it is the wrong door.

4. A shopper or purchase program

Staples supports schools through Classroom Rewards, where shoppers earn 5% back on in-store purchases to give to a local school or teacher. Its Community Giveback program lets customers buy school-supply kits that are donated to local organizations. Menards runs Scrip for religious and other nonprofit groups: you buy Menards gift cards at a discount of up to 4% and sell them at face value. Both can help a school budget. Neither is something you can ask a store manager to donate.

Costco: read the eligibility first

Costco is one of the most searched retailers for fundraiser donations, and its rules exclude most school and team events. It takes monetary requests only, from 501(c)(3)s focused on children, education, or health and human services. Warehouse giving, for local organizations, is handled at the warehouse level and can take the form of Costco Shop Cards. Its guidelines exclude individual schools and PTAs, athletic teams, and merchandise for raffles and auctions. Costco considers one request per organization per fiscal year (September to August) and asks for at least 3 months' notice for a dated event.

How to ask a store manager

Where a program is store-level, the ask is a short conversation with someone who is working. Go in person, ask for the manager or the named coordinator, and name one specific item and your event date. Leave a one-page request with your contact details and your determination letter. Our guide to who approves donation requests explains how to tell a store decision from a corporate one. The restaurant and local company ask sheet covers when to walk in, what to say first, and a leave-behind page. For companies beyond retail, start with our overview of companies that donate products to fundraisers, and for prize ideas see companies that donate raffle prizes.