Say Yes to YES! Vancouver

One of the many YES! Events put on to raise funds for DFS

Here at Dress for Success, we are strong believers in the power of women helping women. We need to continue supporting each other and ensure that if the resources are available, that they are accessible to everyone!

Dress for Success Vancouver is fortunate enough to have many partner organizations who continue to help us reach our goals of assisting more women get back into the workforce. YES! Vancouver (Young Executives for Success) is just one of those many organizations. Founded in 2005, YES! was launched in New York City to champion the mission of Dress for Success. Now with six locations worldwide, YES! provides an outlet for professional women to connect, have fun, and support a meaningful cause. 

The women of YES! at a yoga-inspired event.

These amazing women host a myriad of events including monthly mingles, panel discussions and signature style galas, generously donating all proceeds to Dress for Success Vancouver. As a result of these events, YES! has raised over $85,000 and helped more than 160 women successfully complete Dress for Success programming. How incredible!

"Our vision is to provide the most innovative, fresh and meaningful networking events for professional women in Vancouver, while raising money to help other women get the help they need to advance their careers and livelihood."

Their next event is a Dress for Success Open House here at our boutique on the evening of April 9th! This is a chance to see how Dress for Success works behind the scenes--what a VIP experience! You’ll get to see first-hand where your contributions go, how the shop operates, and meet the wonderful people who run the show. The ticket cost is a donation of $5 for Members and $10 for Non-Members, and includes complimentary cupcakes and champagne from Cakely Creations and Barefoot Wine & Bubbly. Plus, all attendees will leave with a LaRoche Posay goody bag! Talk about a great girls night out! Buy your tickets today!

If you would like to become a member of YES!, please visit their website to find out how! Along with the proceeds of all of their fundraising events, 100% of your membership contribution goes directly back to Dress for Success Vancouver. If it were not for organizations like YES! Vancouver, we would not be able to support the amount of women that we do every year. We encourage you to visit their website and familiarize yourself with their events. Whether for volunteering purposes, networking opportunities, or just to meet some great gals, YES! Vancouver provides the resources that you need to expand you professional network!

Our volunteers who make magic happen!

On Saturday, February 8th, Dress for Success Vancouver volunteer stylists helped dress five clients from Ts'zil Learning Centre Lil'wat Nation/Mount Currie Band. Our style consultants made such every woman feel special and they left feeling completely happy and empowered! Here are some of their feedback:

"It was so nice to have a day to myself!"

"I don't remember the last time that I got something for myself. My last $5 always goes to my kids."

About the DFS volunteers:  "Those women were volunteers?! I can't believe they volunteer to do this. I hope one day I can volunteer to help there too."

"I had so much fun today" (said with a gigantic smile)

One woman told me that her volunteer tried to get her to wear a skirt but "that was not her". She did not get a skirt but now she is thinking about how she is dressing and she said, "I know that it is a risk, but I think I am going to try a skirt."

Finally, another volunteer did her best to try to get another woman to add colour to her black and white outfit but this student would not budge. In the car, I showed this student a red scarf that we had picked up for a missing student and she said that she liked it. I said, "You like this? But it is red!" She said that she liked it and would wear it. I promptly gave it to her. Miracles do happen :)

After DFS, we went to Value Village to purchase items that the students needed for their new outfits or other articles of clothing to mix and match with their DFS outfits. Finally,we went out to lunch and headed home. We had a fashion show in the bus, in which each woman showed everything that she received/bought that day. It was empowering!!!! I can't think of a better way that I could have spent a sunny afternoon.

Volunteer Spotlight, Jen Newsted

Name: Jen Newsted

How long have you volunteered at DFS Vancouver? I just had my 6-month volunteer-versary.

What role do you do? Every Thursday I alternate as Lead & Stylist, and I help with social media, so don’t forget to check out @DFSVancouver on Twitter, Instagram & gives them a like on Facebook.

What is the best thing about volunteering here? I am endlessly blown away by the women I meet, all with different stories, all with the same goals to get their lives to a better place. The best thing about the hour I spend with a client, is seeing the smile on her face when she comes out of the fitting room. That smile is filled with the confidence she’s been needing and I know my job is done and she is going to walk out the door and ace that interview.

What do you do with your time when not volunteering at DFS Vancouver? Marketing Communications keeps me busy from 9 – 5.

Dream vacation? Sun. Sand. Book. Repeat.

What is your motto? Business time.