Dress for Success Greater Orlando

Dress for Success Greater Orlando helps women across Central Florida enter the workforce with confidence, pairing professional attire with career support. An affiliate of the worldwide Dress for Success network, it opened its doors in May 2001 to answer a simple dilemma: without a job, how can a woman afford a suit, and without a suit, how can she get the job?

Through the Suiting program, clients visit the boutique at West Oaks Mall in Ocoee, where volunteers help each woman choose three to five complete outfits covering a job interview, a second interview and her first day of work, along with guidance for the interview ahead. The Career Center offers help with resume writing, and the monthly Professional Women's Group brings women together for networking, confidence building and conversations about the workplace.

Services are free and by appointment through a referral agency. Partners across the region include CareerSource, the Coalition for the Homeless, Covenant House, Harbor House, Jewish Family Services, the Orlando Housing Authority, the Center for Independent Living and the UCF Career Center.

Volunteers keep the boutique running, from styling clients to sorting donations and staffing events. Donations of nearly new suits, separates, work shoes, handbags and new, unopened makeup and toiletries are accepted by appointment, and companies can organize suit drives. Dress for Success Greater Orlando also raises funds through a gala fundraiser.