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Dress for Success is more than a suit – we believe creating a network of support can make a lasting impact in a person’s life.

Dress for Success honours the courage of women and non-binary individuals who strive to overcome the daily barriers that make achieving personal goals and professional advancement disproportionately difficult. We meet their courage with tools that help them thrive at work and in life.

The Dress for Success Canada Foundation was created to ensure that every woman in Canada is within reach of our help.

Thank you to the 500 + social service agencies across Canada that refer clients to our local Dress for Success affiliates. Thank you to the donors and countless volunteers that make it possible for women to be supported on their journey to economic independence.

Above all, to each woman who comes through the doors of Dress for Success – we thank you for your courage, your hope and your trust.

View our Land Acknowledgement.

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Our Mission

Through nation-wide scope, and diversified and sustainable funding, we support the core needs of local affiliate organizations to effectively scale the number of women served through pre-employment and job retention programming, to help women thrive personally and professionally.

We do this through:

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Capacity Building

Capacity Building

We collaborate with Dress for Success (DFS) Worldwide and the 13 DFS affiliates across Canada to build capacity nationwide and enhance operational efficiency.

Creating Partnerships

Creating Partnerships

We source national partnerships to fund local Canadian affiliates’ operations and programs, and national initiatives.

Brand Awareness

Brand Awareness

We strive to increase awareness about Dress for Success in Canada and the impact made in the communities local affiliates serve.

Impact Measurement

Impact Measurement

We coordinate national impact measurement to assess growth and inform future opportunities.

Our Values

Inclusivity

Inclusivity

We believe in equitable access and diversity. We believe in supporting women as they identify themselves and without barriers.

Service

Service

We are in service of those who benefit from Dress for Success programs, our affiliates, sponsors and donors, and communities.

Collaboration

Collaboration

We collaborate with Dress for Success Worldwide, affiliates and partners to build long-term relationships and provide consistent support.

Reconciliation

Reconciliation

We undertake the work of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and contribute to the Calls to Action.

Transparency

Transparency

We act with integrity and honesty. We provide full information required for effective cooperation, and decision-making.

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Vision

Dress for Success Canada Foundation is among Canada’s most recognized registered charities in support of gender equity, economic independence, and workforce development for women.

Dress for Success Canada is the only national women’s organization focused exclusively on pre-employment and job retention support for marginalized and low-income women and non-binary individuals. To optimize growth of our mission impact, the Dress for Success Canada Foundation was established in 2017 to ensure that every woman and non-binary individual in Canada is able to access the services of one of 13 affiliate locations coast-to-coast from Vancouver to Halifax. Our affiliates across the country have been serving women and non-binary individuals since 1999.

Hope & Dream Statement

Every woman has the power to define her life’s potential and opportunity to overcome barriers to achieve success.

In partnership with Dress for Success Worldwide and the Canadian local affiliates, we strive to break down the barriers women face daily that come between them and their goals. Through free programming, wrap-around services, and an empowering network of support, we hope to give our clients the tools they need to defy the odds against them.

Global Initiative

We are one piece of something much bigger.

We are part of a global network, supporting women in their journeys to economic independence across the world.

Founded in 1996 by Nancy Lublin, a second year Manhattan law student, the first Dress for Success affiliate was born. Today, there are now 139 affiliates in 22 countries around the globe. Each local affiliate is uplifted and empowered by the support of their communities. In partnership with local community services, other non-profits, and government agencies—including homeless shelters, immigration services, job training programs, educational institutions, and domestic violence shelters, among many others—women are referred to our organization to begin their Dress for Success Journey.

 

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Land Acknowledgement

Dress for Success Canada Foundation is a national organization and as such, we acknowledge how fortunate we are to be guests on this territory known as Canada.

While our Board members are located in different territories across the country, our Staff are located in Kanadario, colonially known as Ontario. Our staff live, work, and operate on the Anishinabewaki ᐊᓂᔑᓈᐯᐗᑭ, Anishininiimowin (Oji-Cree), and Cree territories, among others.

We recognize that our ability to settle in Ontario is a direct result of historical displacement and violence against Indigenous Peoples. As guests on territories from one coast to the other, we are grateful for the opportunity to gather where generations of Indigenous Peoples have protected and taken care of these lands, and still do. We recognize and deeply appreciate the contributions of the past, present, and future from all Métis, Intuit, First Nations, and other Indigenous Peoples that strengthen communities across the country.

As settlers on Turtle Island, we recognize our place in the history of displacement and violence against Indigenous Peoples and understand there is a large responsibility to reflect, learn, educate, and work as a collective to do our part in reconciliation. As an organization, we honour the historic and ongoing leadership of all Indigenous communities as we continue to practice the unlearning of colonial mindsets and implement the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action.

Our aim in reconciliation is to uplift the voices of Indigenous Peoples, disrupt the systems in place that have mistreated and harmed them for centuries, and fight against the presence of colonialism and white supremacy in the non-profit sector and beyond.

Our team is committed to the Calls to Action and actively engages in trainings and self-guided learning to understand more about decolonization and reconciliation. As an organization, we are dedicated to working towards a future that intertwines accountability with respect, promise with action, and culture with acknowledgement.

As part of our ongoing commitment to reconciliation, here are some resources we have found educational when learning about decolonization:

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