MORE THAN CLOTHING: HOW DRESS FOR SUCCESS HELPS WOMEN BUILD CAREERS, AND CONFIDENCE.
On a spring afternoon at San Francisco City Hall, I stepped onto the Mayor’s Balcony wearing a white pin-striped blazer, silk button-down, tailored navy trousers, and a pair of black heels. I had been invited to serve on the host committee for an important community-driven event, surrounded by civic leaders, business professionals, and community advocates from across the Bay Area. Before I spoke to anyone, something felt different. I stood taller, walked with a stride, completely comfortable in the public eye. Throughout the event, I spoke with attendees, posed for photographs, and connected with the mayor. The confidence I felt that afternoon wasn’t developed alone but through how I presented myself, the way that outfit undeniably shaped how I moved through the space.
The experience raised a question: Why does what we wear have such a powerful effect on confidence? Research suggests the answer may be both psychological and social. Studies by Princeton psychologists Janine Willis and Alexander Todorov found that people form first impressions in as little as 100 milliseconds. Other research, including the concept of “enclothed cognition” by Hajo Adam and Adam Galinsky, suggests that clothing can influence not only how others perceive us, but how we perceive ourselves. For Erin Badillo, Executive Director of Dress for Success San Francisco/San Jose, those findings are reflected in the lives of the women she serves every day. “It’s one of those things when you dive into that, feels a bit uncomfortable.” Badillo says, “You wouldn't want to live in a world where so much is based on first impression, right? But it’s a fact.”
That reality sits at the center of Dress for Success San Francisco/San Jose, a leading resource for advancing women in the workplace. The organization’s purpose is to empower women to achieve economic mobility by providing a network of support, workplace attire, and development tools for success. While many people recognize the organization for providing interview clothing, Badillo says the wardrobe is just the beginning: “The clothing is like a funnel into the other work we do.” Through coaching preparation, networking opportunities, and professional clothing, Dress for Success helps women build confidence and the skills needed to pursue new opportunities. For some, that support can be life-changing.
One of those women is Melissa Camacho. When Camacho first connected with Dress for Success San Francisco, she was rebuilding her life after leaving an abusive relationship. A single mother originally from Mexico City, she was living in a shelter with her two children and searching for a way forward. Despite holding a master’s degree in science, restarting a career while navigating housing instability and supporting a family presented significant challenges. Through Dress for Success, Camacho received professional clothing, interview preparation, and access to career development programs. Just as importantly, she found a community invested in her success.
Her story became the centerpiece of The Disco Ball, Dress for Success San Francisco’s 20th Anniversary Gala, this year, where she shared her journey with supporters, volunteers, and donors. Today, Camacho is the co-founder of Home Support and Companionshop, a worker-owned cooperative that provides care services throughout the Bay Area. She has also earned scholarships through City College of San Francisco and plans to continue her education at San Francisco State University.
While workplace attire often provides the first point of contact, the organization's broader mission focuses on helping women build long-term economic stability and career growth. Badillo sees that transformation in real time, “I remember working at our San Jose location, and this woman showed up and she was so stressed, and you could just see her kind of mumbling to herself,” she recalls. “She didn’t know what to expect.” After meeting with volunteers and selecting clothing for an upcoming interview, the woman’s demeanor changed entirely. “She came back, and it was like she had been given this ball of confidence,” Badillo says.
That shift is reflected in the organization's outcomes, according to Dress for Success San Francisco, 90% of clients report increased confidence after their appointment, and 60% secure employment within 60 days. For many women, the clothing itself is only part of the transformation. The experience of being supported, encouraged, and prepared for an opportunity can be equally powerful. For Badillo, the connection between clothing and confidence is personal.
Before leading Dress for Success San Francisco, she began her career in an entirely different world: theatre. As an undergraduate at the University of California, Davis, she applied for an on-campus job in the development department at the Mondavi Center, initially misunderstanding what “development meant. “I was like, oh, development, that must mean like research and development,” she said with a laugh. “I didn’t know it meant fundraising.” The position introduced her to donor relations, event planning, and nonprofit leadership. While pursuing a career in theatre, she continued working in fundraising, eventually earning a Master's of Fine Arts degree from Columbia University. What began as a practical way to support herself while working in the arts evolved into a career spanning nearly two decades in nonprofit organizations.
“When the opportunity to join Dress for Success arose eight years ago, the mission immediately resonated with me. I love fashion, and what we do is beautiful, meaningful, and fun, and it’s also life-changing,” Badillo says, and her connection to the work also comes from her own experiences navigating professional spaces. “As a fat woman, it was hard early in my career to find workplace clothing that fit, that looked sharp, that made me feel like I belonged in the room,” she says. “That’s not always a given for a lot of people, and it wasn’t for me.”
That perspective informs how she thinks about the organization’s role in the lives of its clients. The goal is not simply to help women look professional. It is to help them feel prepared, capable, and confident in spaces where first impressions can shape opportunity. “I want to make sure that everybody has access to the clothing that helps them feel like they can get any job,” she says. That philosophy extends beyond fashion. While clothing may help someone walk into an interview with confidence, Dress for Success is ultimately focused on helping women build careers, financial stability, and lasting professional networks.
Dress for Success provides many services under the umbrella of the Four C’s: Clothing, Coaching, Core Skills, and Community. Together, the programs are designed to help women not only secure employment but also build long-term economic mobility. For many clients, the journey begins with clothing, women working one-on-one with volunteer stylists who help them select attire appropriate for interviews, workplaces, and career goals. Beyond choosing an outfit, the experience offers something less tangible but equally important, encouragement. “You get a personal stylist who helps you think about what to wear, your job,” Badillo says, “And our volunteers love the women we serve.”
From there, many clients move into coaching services, through virtual and in-person sessions, women can receive guidance on resume development, interview preparation, career transitions, and job searches. Dress for Success also offers cohort-based programs, typically a six-session course that provides more in-depth career support in both English and Spanish. As the workplace continues to evolve, so do the organization's programs. This year, Dress for Success launched AI Foundations Skills for Life and Work, helping women develop a basic understanding of emerging technologies that are increasingly becoming part of everyday employment. The organization has also collaborated with companies, including LinkedIn, providing 500 clients with access to LinkedIn Premium and LinkedIn Learning, as well as financial education programming through a partnership with Capital One.
The results can be significant, according to Badillo, women who complete the organization's cohort-based programs see an average salary increase of 191 percent within a year of participation. The final component of the Four C’s is community, a dimension Badillo believes is often overlooked in professional development. “I like to call it the democratization of networking,” she says. For many professionals, networking opportunities are built into college programs, workplaces, or existing social circles. For others, those connections can be difficult to access. Dress for Success works to bridge that gap by bringing together clients, volunteers, corporate partners, and industry leaders through workshops, events, and networking programs.
One example is the organization's Professional Women’s Group, which connects participants with speakers, mentors, and career development opportunities. Earlier this year, members attended a professional development event with leadership from the Golden State Warriors organization that combined networking, career education, professional headshots, and personal branding resources. By connecting women with mentors, resources, and professional networks, the organizations aim to create support systems that extend far beyond a single interview or job offer.
As Dress for Success San Francisco celebrates its 20th anniversary, the organization's impact continues to grow. Since its founding, it has helped thousands of women throughout the Bay Area access workplace attire, career development resources, and support networks designed to foster economic mobility. Yet this growth carries challenges: “Last year was one of our most successful programmatic years ever, but it was also one of our hardest fundraising years ever,” Badillo says. The challenge reflects the broader reality across the Bay Area. In a region where the cost of living continues to rise, many working women still struggle to access the resources, professional networks, and opportunities needed to advance their careers.
“The federal poverty line is just under $16,000 for individuals and under $33,000 for a family of four,” Badillo says. “But we know that in San Francisco, especially in the Bay Area as a whole, that’s nowhere near what it costs to live here.” For Badillo, one of the organization's most important messages is that there should be no stigma attached to asking for help. “I want to make sure that underemployed women know we’re here to help them too,” she says. “We want to help as many women as possible.”
That support comes in many forms: volunteers assist clients with styling appointments, coaching sessions, donation processing, and inventory management. Corporate partners contribute expertise, mentorship, and educational programming. Individual donors help fund the services that allow the organization to expand its reach throughout the Bay Area. Earlier this year, Dress for Success launched The Access Circle, a monthly giving program designed to provide sustainable support for its growing programs and services. Badillo notes that many supporters first discover the organization through fashion but stay because of the impact they witness firsthand. “We’ve had a half dozen pairs of people who've become amazing friends because of volunteering at Dress for Success,” she says.
That sense of connection may be one of the organization's greatest strengths, while clothing can help someone prepare for an interview, lasting success often depends on something deeper: confidence, opportunity, and community. Looking back on that afternoon at City Hall, I remember how differently I carried myself because of what I was wearing. The confidence felt real, but Dress for Success shows that fashion is a foundational tool, but not the complete solution. Behind every blazer, dress, or pair of shoes is a network of volunteers, coaches, mentors, and supporters helping women see possibilities for themselves that once felt out of reach. The clothing may be what brings women through the door. What keeps them moving forward is the community waiting on the other side.
Work Cited
Willis, Janine, and Alexander Todorov. “First Impressions: Making up Your Mind after a 100-Ms Exposure to a Face.” July 2006,
Adam, Hajo, and Adam Galinsky. “Enclothed Cognition.” 7 Feb. 2012,
Hutson, Matthew, and Tori Rodriguez. “Dress for Success: How Clothes Influence Our Performance.” Scientific American, Scientific American, 20 Feb. 2024, www.scientificamerican.com/article/dress-for-success-how-clothes-influence-our-performance/.
Shapira, Allison. “The New Rules of Work Clothes.” Harvard Business Review, Harvard Business Review, 7 Sept. 2022, hbr.org/2022/09/the-new-rules-of-work-clothes.