June 16, 2008 Dress for Success - 2008 Play video

(NECN: Boston, Mass.) - Dress for Success, a boutique in Boston offers all the best labels. There are pricey suits and accessories that put the shops of Newbury Street to shame. However, there is not a single cash register to be found…all the clothes are free.

For their efforts, NECN and Citizens Bank have named 'Dress for Success' a 2008 Champion in Action.

NECN’s Ally Donnelly takes us inside.

Script:

Personal shopper Kim Todd is trying to find the one. The suit that will make Lorna Allen feel like a million bucks.

The Boston boutique where the 46-year-old South Boston woman shops is filled with gorgeous tops and bottoms. Pricey labels like Tahari, Anne Freedman and Talbot’s. Allen started coming here three years ago, at a low point in her life.

“There was no money and it wasn't looking good at all.”

The single mother felt like she was going under. There were bills to pay, mouths to feed and she was unemployed.

“I need to feel...worthy, you know?”

Allen got into a job-training program and landed an interview, but she had one very big problem - she had nothing to wear.

“It's the chicken and egg situation. Women do want to change their lives, but for the cost of a suit.”

Nancy Schneider is co-founder of the Boston chapter of Dress For Success, a non-profit that helps low income women solve a common problem: they don't have a job to pay for a new interview suit, but if they don't

Schneider: “The cost of outfitting yourself in a professional way -- suit, shoes, hose, bag, suit, coat sometimes, is prohibitive.”

Dress For Success clients are typically referred by a local social service agency. The women have also gone through some kind of training program and either have an interview scheduled or are heading to a job fair. Todd, the program's Executive Director, says clients range in age from 17 to 65.

Todd: “Some from rehab, some from homeless shelters, battered women's shelters, it really runs the gamut.”

Schneider: “People who just want to turn their lives around. And we are a launching pad. We can get them going or we can certainly help.”

When clients come in, they are greeted by their own personal shopper. Volunteers who will find them a suit and accessories and not charge them a dime.

Schneider: “It's not easy to take clothes from people. They're embarrassed, they're afraid and so part of what we try to do early on, is to try and make people feel comfortable.”

The shoppers help the clients navigate the racks of donated new and used clothing.

“Any suit in the shop is appropriate for an interview. Our goal is for our client to find the right suit that makes her feel like she can conquer that interview.”

Allen says she felt a bit like Cinderella. Her volunteers, the mice getting her ready for the ball.

Allen: “One got shoes, one got a suit, another got a blouse. It was amazing.”

Schneider: “It's a little bit like Filene’s Basement in here because when you're pulling scarves off different clients and saying this color looks better on you -- it's fun. It's instant gratification. It works and it's important.”

Dress for Success has outfitted nearly 3,000 women. Women who can then work toward their own self-sufficiency. The process gives new meaning to the phrase retail therapy.

Todd: “You can see it. You can see when a woman has a suit on she just stands taller, she smiles, she can't even help but smile. So many of them will look in the mirror and say, who is that?”

When she emerged from the dressing room in her first pinstripe suit, Allen stared at the woman in the mirror -- not knowing herself.

“They're angels. That's all I know, is they're angels.”

She came in sneakers and sweat pants and says she had forgotten what it had felt like to look like a woman.

“They made me think about the future. They made me believe in myself.”

Schneider: “It's profound when people around you say, you can do this, you are going to be a wonderful success. And we're going to help you with practical tools.”

Dress for Success staffers say 40 to 49 percent of their clients get the job - and because paychecks don't come right away, they give the women a week's work of clothes to mix and match. They also invite them to mentoring programs and lectures.

“We hope to let women realize that there's more to a job than just a paycheck. That you can find a career, you can find -- you can fulfill your dreams, really.”

Allen is fulfilling her dreams. She got that first job, then another and is now launching her own jewelry company. She plans to go on sales calls ---- in a new suit.