Foyle Women’s Aid is making ripples in Derry/Londonderry with its ‘Dress for Success’ initiative, a project brought to Northern Ireland by Marie Brown which provides clothing to help women gain economic independence and improve their confidence.
The ongoing project in Derry/Londonderry is managed by Sarah Quinn, who runs the initiative with the help of a dedicated group of volunteers.
Quinn told local news outlet, the Derry Journal: “Dress for Success started here in the northwest (of Northern Ireland) in 2018. Marie Brown, the chief executive of Foyle Women’s Aid, was at a family justice centre in Colorado where she saw a ‘Dress for Success’ affiliate. She then went about bringing it here.
“It’s a global, non-profit movement that supports and empowers women to become more financially independent. We do that through providing women with suitable clothes for work, interviews or occasionally for attending court.”
As well as providing women who approach the service with clothing, the initiative also offers a number of other key elements of support to help with personal independence, as Quinn explained.
"We provide clothing, but we also provide core employability support too, such as interview skills and we have experts in HR who can help with CVs. Ideally, we want to be offering that as a whole package to offer the woman the best possible chance to be the best version of herself.”
Women do not have to approach the ‘Dress for Success’ initiative directly either. It is possible to be referred through other support agencies such as the Job Assist Centre, with which ‘Dress for Success’ enjoys a close partnership.
Quinn explained: “They (the Job Assist Centre) deliver a ten-week care certificate programme for women who aren’t in employment. At the end of that ten weeks, they are guaranteed an interview with a local care-based organisation. We book out the boutique and they come in and get styled for interview. Women say they imagine that this is what a personal shopping experience to be like, they absolutely love the experience.
"The majority of the clothes are new. We have a good relationship with Marks & Spencer and some of their end of line stock would come to us. Anything that’s not suitable for work, we either pass on to charity or we keep a supply of more casual clothes for women who would maybe come to us in a crisis.”
Foyle Women’s Aid’s charity partners have also been throwing their weight behind the scheme, helping ensure that any woman approaching ‘Dress for Success’ can find the outfit and support they need.
Quinn said: “Allstate NI have been a great support to ‘Dress for Success’ NI. They are a charity partner with Women’s Aid across the north, they sponsored the fit out of our boutique in Belfast and provided a team of volunteers to build the furniture. We also run pop-up sales throughout the year, which helps us to not only recirculate stock, but also gives women a chance to buy a bargain.
“We do corporate clothes drives, where organisations will put a call out to staff to donate items in their wardrobes with the labels still on or very gently worn. We have a great relationship with New Look here in Derry, where they give us 25 per cent off when we occasionally need to buy new things, typically for younger women, we can get much more there than we would otherwise. This helps make sure we have an outfit to suit every woman who comes through the doors.”
However, as well as ensuring a woman is given the confidence to go out and succeed based on her outward appearance, Quinn emphasised that ‘Dress for Success’ was all about making sure that people it supports can feel good on the inside, too.
“We want to look ‘Beyond the Suit’ and dress women from the inside out”, she said.
“Putting on a new outfit can make all the difference and we see that when the clients come in here. Women get quite emotional when they come in, especially young mammies or women who have experienced domestic abuse and other significant trauma or upheaval in their lives.
“They have had a knock to their confidence and have been hiding their bodies, they don’t feel comfortable going into shops, so this gives us a chance to help them try new things and often they surprise themselves. Often, they get emotional, and they see the best in themselves. For us, it’s about helping them to bring that out and it’s unbelievable the difference in them when they’re leaving here. I think having that one-to-one appointment, receiving some style tips and trying on clothes they might not try usually, really helps to grow their confidence.”
Photo by Becca McHaffie on Unsplash
