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CASE STUDY
Dress for Success
Stockhome, NSW
On Monday 8 March 2010, as part of
International Women’s Day, employees
from our Melbourne and Sydney offices
were encouraged to support the ‘Dress
for Success’ initiative.
Dress for Success is a not-for-profit
organisation which encourages
working women to donate their
old suits, blouses, shoes,
handbags and accessories
to disadvantaged women.
The aim is to provide women who are
re-entering the workforce with suitable
attire for their job interviews.
Our employees were encouraged to
contribute their old work clothes and
accessories to help assist women. Men were
also invited to participate by donating clothes
from their wives, girlfriends, mothers, sisters
and friends. Sixty-three bags of clothes
were donated to the Dress for Success
Sydney office in Burwood. These clothes
have gone a long way to helping Dress for
Success meet their 2010 target of dressing
500 women. In addition to this support,
women from across our organisation have
participated in two volunteering days at the
Dress for Success showroom.
Founded in 1997, Dress for Success has
helped more than 500,000 women around
the world. These women include refugees,
newly-arrived migrants, victims of domestic
violence as well as women who have
recently re-entered society after time in
custody. Every client receives an outfit for
her interview and one more outfit when
she receives a role. In addition, Dress for
Success provides a number of employment
retention programs including:
• Professional Women’s Group – Offers
ongoing support as women successfully
transition into the workforce,
• Career Centre – An initiative
that promotes confidence and
professionalism by providing
women career guidance. The centre
also provides practical advice on
presentation and job interview skills,
• Steps to Success – An initiative
which focuses on the first 30 days of
employment, during which newly-hired
women face many potential challenges.
During this time, Dress for Success
volunteers help women prepare for their
new jobs and identify potential barriers
they may encounter in the first few days
of their new job.
Dress for Success is a practical, hands-on
resource which supports some of the most
disadvantaged women in our society. This
initiative not only provides women with the
necessary clothing to re-enter the job force,
it also provides them with the skills and
confidence to do so.
Our employees identified developing skills
and re-training programs for homeless
and disadvantaged people as a key area
of concern for our business. The Dress for
Success initiative provides a much-needed
resource for hundreds of disadvantaged
women in our community and additionally
provides meaningful opportunities for
our employees to volunteer their time
and expertise.
“In April and May 2010 staff from Stockland
provided two days of volunteer time to
assist with our seasonal stock changeover
– this involved sorting and culling clothing,
packing away summer stock, cleaning
shoes and boots, ironing shirts and tops and
re-stocking with winter clothing. It was hard
work but offered a great opportunity for both
organisations to work co-operatively for the
benefit of disadvantaged women.
Organisations like Dress for Success
Sydney cannot exist without the
assistance of organisations such
as Stockland.”
Jen Levy – Dress for Success Sydney
Stockland Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability Report June 2010
67