Materials Matter was founded as the Habitat for Humanity Resource Center in 2003 by Jason McKinstry and Alison Riback. While working as a materials acquisition and donation expert for Habitat for Humanity of Orange County, Jason learned that most Habitat for Humanity affiliates in Southern California were paying retail for their materials and equipment, bringing the cost of constructing a home up between $100,000 and $200,000. Concerned that this was a big waste of donation dollars in a time when the cost of land and raw materials was soaring, he began imagining a solution—a regional center that coordinated the solicitation and distribution of large donations on behalf of affiliates.

Alison saw the same potential while working for Habitat for Humanity International as a regional affiliate support specialist. Not only would a regional center make it easier for donors by providing one point of contact, but it could also provide valuable coordination services, harnessing their collective buying power to secure bulk purchasing deals. The idea was so successful that by 2005, they moved the operation to a large facility in Corona and launched a social enterprise to secure its future—the Home Improvement Outlet, a discount and surplus store open to the public.

In its first year and a half of full scale operation, the organization provided over $1.5 million in materials to organizations in need and recycled over 35 million pounds of good, usable materials that were headed for landfills. By the end of 2006, the Board of Directors determined it was time to expand to serve a greater mission. Having seen the model work, they knew they were capable of having a great and far-reaching impact by making the same donations, services and resources available to all nonprofits engaged in valuable work. Towards that end, the organization changed its name to Materials Matter.