About Dress For Success Vancouver
What we do is about so much more than the clothes
Since 1999, Dress For Success Vancouver has helped women and gender-diverse individuals across Metro Vancouver build confidence, skills, and careers.
Here's how it started, and how it’s grown.
Dress For Success Vancouver opened with a clear vision: help women make a strong first impression through workplace attire. What started with a suit has grown into much more.
Since then, Dress For Success Vancouver has grown from providing workplace attire to offering a full ecosystem of programs, built around the belief that she needs more than an outfit to take her next step. She needs skills, community, and confidence that compounds over time, from that first appointment through every step that follows.
That progression is not accidental. It’s the shape of everything we’ve built. Today, Dress For Success Vancouver serves women and gender-diverse individuals across Metro Vancouver, all at no cost, made entirely possible through the generosity of volunteers, donors, and community partners. We provide a comprehensive suite of resources because we know economic mobility is about more than just the clothes. True resilience requires sustained, integrated support.
Dress For Success Vancouver was founded in February 1999 by Astrid Levelt, becoming the 27th Dress for Success network member, and the first outside the United States. The first boutique opened in a former nun’s residence at St. Patrick’s Parish on Main Street in East Vancouver. The organization’s first paid Executive Director, Deborah Twocock, led Dress For Success Vancouver into a new era, introducing the Working Women’s Group, career, and mentorship opportunities.
Purpose
Dress for Success Vancouver is a community helping unemployed and underemployed women achieve economic mobility and personal success.
Vision
A world where every woman thrives in work and in life.
Values
Dignity. Inclusion. Hope.
By the numbers
Of 2,500+ women and gender-diverse clients served in the past year:
Client Outcomes
62% achieve outcomes by accessing single-service support; 38% access multiple services. Nearly 60% of participants are in their prime working years (ages 30-54).
44%→28.5%
Unemployment reduced
20.4% → 31%
Full-time employment increased
23%
Career advancement
Land Acknowledgement
Dress for Success Vancouver is grateful to operate as uninvited settlers on the unceded ancestral territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. We acknowledge the deep and ongoing harm caused by colonialism, particularly to Two-Spirit people and Indigenous women, and we actively commit to uplifting Indigenous voices in our work toward a more equitable world.
Dress for Success Vancouver was the first international member, founded in 1999. It is an independently operated network member of the international Dress For Success network, operating in 130+ cities globally and empowering 1.3 million women worldwide.
Introducing
The 5Ds of Success
Five ways we support women on their journey.
At its core, Dress For Success Worldwide believes in a holistic approach to delivering the support, skills, and access women need to thrive in work and life.
Be Part of Someone’s Next Chapter
Whether you’re looking to volunteer, donate, host a fundraising event or donate clothing, we’re grateful for your support. Your generosity helps women and gender-diverse individuals across Metro Vancouver achieve the futures they deserve.