Career Wardrobe helps women enter the workforce with the right clothes and an upbeat attitude.

Prolific novelist Horatio Alger had a successful formula for telling a story. He frequently chronicled the upward rise of a young man from humble beginnings who endures hardship and establishes himself in a position with potential. Alger’s consistent literary device, which signaled the beginning of a character’s ascent, was the acquisition of an article of clothing – a good overcoat, a pair of shoes or maybe a silver pocket watch. Such accoutrements would give the young man the courage and confidence to apply for an apprenticeship in a law firm or an entry-level position at some old New York investment house. Clothes made the man by helping to create a more hopeful future for him. And, to be sure, he was taken more seriously. 

Fast-forward about a hundred years through numerous cultural and economic changes and the same thing still applies. That first step into the world of work requires more than just a skill. People market not only their attributes but themselves.

Sheri Cole understands that presentation matters.

Cole is the executive director of The Career Wardrobe, a non-profit organization that serves more than 5,000 women in transition by providing free professional clothing as well as coaching in basic employment preparation. She started seven years ago with a staff of two. Today she works with a staff of five and a budget of more than $400,000 – funded entirely by private institutions. But the real measure of Career Wardobe’s success is in the women whose lives have been changed by the organization.

Women are referred to Career Wardrobe through job training programs or social service agencies. On their first visit they receive consultation and assistance while they shop in the on-site boutique. Volunteers help them select an appropriate outfit for an interview or the first day on a new job.

“We try to get all the women a matched business suit, shoes and accessories to go with clothing,” Cole explained. “They leave with a bag of their things as well as a beauty basics bag filled with cosmetic and toiletry samples. These things have to be new, so if you bought the wrong lipstick and didn’t open, if you travel and use the hotel moisturizers or collect samples from the cosmetic counter, you can donate them here.”

Cole says the typical Career Wardrobe client is an African-American woman in her mid-twenties to early thirties with two school-age children. “She’s worked, but in a very entry-level job,” Cole said. “It was probably customer service or housekeeping. But now she’s looking for a better second job at a place where she can start out in an entry-level position.”

Success for most of Cole’s clients is a 9-to-5 job. Cole recalls one of her clients becoming “filled with hope” because she was getting on the bus with everyone else at 8:30 to be at the office at 9 a.m.

“She looked around and was so happy to realize she looked like everybody else,” Cole said.

In addition to providing wardrobe assistance and consultation, volunteers, such as human resource professionals from area companies, help clients learn interview and presentation skills. Cole says clients can also get help preparing a resume.

Others among the more than 100 volunteers devote their spare time to Career Wardrobe by assisting with clothing drives, wardrobe consultation (personal shoppers) and staffing the boutique.

Currently two of Cole’s staff are former Career Wardrobe clients, so each day she gets to see the hope on the faces of women who feel like they’ve been given a second chance along with the matching shoes and bag.

An Ohio native, Cole moved to Philadelphia in 1994 after grad school. In college, Cole gravitated towards women’s studies courses. She also knew she wanted a job where she’d be helping people.

“I didn’t know where that would take me.” 

When she came to Philadelphia, she went to work for the Women’s Alliance for Job Equity.  Then she found Career Wardrobe, which was a “perfect fit,” as she described.

“I love administration, pulling a program together, talking to people and getting resources together to see the growth of an organization. In 7 years, seeing what we’ve been able to do and how we’ve helped women has really been exciting.”

Cole, who was honored in 2003 by The Philadelphia Business Journal as one Philadelphia’s “40 Under Forty,” for her leadership and community involvement, says her schedule tends to be “crazy, but she doesn’t mind. She says the organization continues to expand its ability to reach and help prepare more women for the workforce. Expanded programs include “Professional Women’s Network,” a networking group for former participants to keep them motivated and moving forward in their careers and a “Client Help Desk” to assist with resume review and interviewing skills.

“For me, one of the most satisfying things is sitting in my office and hearing people laugh. And seeing the hope women have. When you think of women with limited education and less access to resources finally being able to start a career, it’s very satisfying. These women want to be role models for their children.”

www.careerwardrobe.org
Current needs:
Volunteers to work in the boutique during the day (9 AM to 5 PM)
Clothing: Professional women’s wear – sizes 10 +, hosiery, undergarments and cosmetics must be new.

Angelina Sciolla lives in Philadelphia.