Dress for Success expands services with second location

TAMPA, Fla. - Dress for Success Tampa Bay has teamed up with CareerSource Tampa Bay to help streamline services for the women they help. The group just opened a boutique for woman in the CareerSource building off of Florida Blvd.  

Katie McGill , the executive director of Dress for Success, says there has been a growing need for new locations in the Tampa area. She hopes this will be convenient for people who are using the CareerSource to help them with finding a job. 

Now, women like Betty Jeane Heart will not have to go all the way to the South Tampa location. 

Heart was laid off a year and a half ago when her company closed.

“It’s extremely hard. Being unemployed, I lost my house, my car, I lost everything and we’re starting over from scratch, so this is a blessing.”

Heart was referred to Dress for Success to find a suit for her interview. Now that she has gotten the job, she went back to Dress for Success for a full work wardrobe. She was the very first appointment for the new location. 

McGill says a lot of love went into this boutique.

“They can come here, they get a personal shopper to work with them. They get a suit, shoes,  purse, the whole outfit; everything they need to be job ready to go look for a job. Once they get a job, they can call us and they get a week’s worth of clothing. It’s not just a dress. I always say, we give out hope. That’s what we really give out. Especially when you have a woman put on a suit for the first time. You see her shoulders go back and her confidence. That’s what I love to see.”

Heart says this is a very empowering experience. 

“This is a very emotional thing – a good emotional. Just awesomeness goes through me when I see myself in the new clothes that I get from here.”

McGill says she will continue to keep helping the women of Tampa Bay.

“We serve over 2,000 women a year and my goal is to double that. In spite of this virus, we will double that.”

They are always in need of personal hygiene products and large women’s sizes for clothing and shoes. 

If you need help or know someone who does, you can contact Dress for Success on their website, tampabay.dressforsuccess.org, or call their office at 813-259-1876.