The weeks following the holiday season are always a great time for cleaning out your closet to make room for the new items you acquired throughout your celebrations. But have you ever thought about where your retired, pre-loved clothing ends up?
As we enter into 2022, I am willing to bet that the thought has crossed your mind at least a time or two. However, as the daily hustle and bustle of life stresses on, it’s easy to put this thought out of your mind and put your unwanted clothes into a trash bag where they will likely rest in your trunk for months before eventually ending up in the landfill.
If this is not you, then I am very impressed. Because I will be honest, this has absolutely been me in the past. But the truly impactful and amazing thing that we get to do at Dress for Success Cincinnati is witness what can happen when it doesn’t end up in your dumpster, but instead, ends up on one of our inspiring clients.
Thanks to the help of our exceptional Inventory Coordinator, Cynthia Watts, and Styling Manager, Kate Black, not to mention the styling and donation center volunteers who make it all happen, Dress for Success Cincinnati gives your favorite clothing a new life -- and one with a purpose.
Our donation center, which reopened today after being briefly closed for the holidays, is the source for this magic. Located at the back of our office, this vast warehouse is open to all Tuesday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. All you are required to do is show up and drop off, and the rest is up to us.
DFSC is very fortunate to have an amazing, ever-growing team of volunteers who then dive into your pre-loved fashions to sort out the perfect items for our clients to wear to their next interview. But it doesn’t stop there. Items that aren’t necessarily interview ready, such as more casual items and designer fashions, are curatively placed in our upscale resale boutique, Portaluca, where they are sold and the proceeds are returned to our organization. This profit then goes toward the other impactful services we offer our clients, such as our HigherHER women’s career training courses and our EmpowerHER female networking opportunities.
The best part of this process, however, is getting to see the impact that your donation can actually make. Our clients come to us from a myriad of different backgrounds and situations, but the one thing they have in common is their drive to accomplish their goals. Oftentimes, that first interview outfit is the missing piece that turns that drive into empowerment and success.
Clients can request our styling services for two reasons: to find an extraordinary outfit for their upcoming interview and to prepare with all of the essentials for starting their new career. That is the most incredible part of donating to us – you know that your items are benefiting a client who is on her way to success.
Another exciting factor is that you can be as involved in the process as you wish to be. We are always inviting new volunteers to join our team and help with either sorting donations or working one-on-one with a client to style them in an outfit that helps them shine.
We offer monthly volunteer open houses, with the next one being next Thursday, January 13, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and are always available outside of that time to talk with you and get to know how you could benefit our organization.
Our donation center is not the only option we offer for helping our clients, however. You can also make a donation using our Amazon Wish List. With the help of our styling manager, Kate Black, we have curated a list of all of the items our clients need most. It’s as simple as selecting the items you would like to donate, purchasing them and they are automatically sent to our office and added to our StyleHER Studio.
Those who donate from our Amazon Wish List provide an irreplaceable service by equipping us with necessary items that we may not typically receive through our donation center. It is a great opportunity for supporters to donate without having to leave the comfort of their homes, as well. We can’t say enough about these donations and how they keep our organization afloat.
If you’re looking for a way to inspire our clients with the confidence to achieve their dreams, look no further than the pile of clothing from your holiday closet clean out. It can be something as simple as dropping off a donation, volunteering your time or clicking on our Amazon Wish List that transforms a client’s life.
Our donation center hours are as follows:
Tuesday 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Wednesday 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Thursday 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Before making a donation, visit our ‘Donate Clothing’ section of our website to review the list of acceptable donations at dfscincy.org/support-get-involved/donate-clothing/
For more information on volunteering, contact Courtney Shannon at cshannon@dfscincy.org
You can view our Amazon Wish List here.
