January 15th, 2025

Clothing initiative dresses for success

By Alejandra Pulido-Guzman - Lethbridge Herald on January 15, 2025.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDapulido@lethbridgeherald.com

A new initiative to help low-income people access high-quality clothing for integration into the workplace, graduation and school is accepting donations for its first event.
Natasha Mark, creator of Bright Futures Boutique, says she has partnered up with the Lethbridge YWCA to help women feel empowered by their wardrobe.
“The overarching sentiment of the Bright Futures Boutique is helping people feel worthy of a promising future where they are engaged, feeling more fulfilled and feeling more confident,” says Mark.
She explains that she doesn’t agree with tying value to someone’s appearance, but unfortunately there is an expectation in the professional world to look the part. That’s a tough expectation to fill, especially for those who are struggling financially.  
“I want to help people cultivate a wardrobe that uplifts them, that is empowering and helps them take that step towards a brighter future.”
Mark works at a high-end boutique in the heart of downtown and she has been inspired by her clients to help others access good quality clothing that may not be accessible to them elsewhere.
“I am utilizing the network at the store to gain donations,” she says. “I offer styling services to our costumers; I go into their wardrobe and I help them purge unnecessary items. And then we put together look-books and things like that to re-imagine their wardrobe.”
She says that after doing this, her clients began to ask what they could do with the purged items, as they did not want them to end up in a thrift store where they could be sold for prices that could still be unaffordable for people who could benefit most from them.
“They have been asking us what they can do with coloured shirts, ties and suits they previously purchased from us, so that sparked the idea of a program where low-income people could stop by and ‘shop’ for what they need,” says Mark.
But the help doesn’t end there. Mark will be helping those attending the event to put outfits together that will help them in their pursuit of work, or to attend work if they already have a job.
The first event will take place on Saturday at the YWCA Lethbridge from noon until 6 p.m. to help women who are actively engaged in finding work, or are working currently but are low-income individuals, to find suitable clothes for their workplace.
“We are looking for donations continuously, because we would like it to be a re-occurring event,” says Mark. “We are looking for gently used or new professional clothing like blazers, blouses, trousers, skirts, anything that would help them look professional.”
They will be offering two similar programs later in the year to help students graduating from high school with their attires and another one for school-aged children going back to school.
“For our grad program we are looking at coloured shirts, ties, suits, dressed pants, dresses, formal gowns that are gently used or new. And we will be collecting them at around March or April as graduations happened between May and June,” says Mark.
As for back to school, Mark says they will be collecting gently used clothing for students from kindergarten to Grade 12, probably closer to August.
“People wanting to donate can contact me via email at natashasfinary@gmail.com or @natashasfinary on Instagram and we can coordinate for me to pick up or for them to drop off at either Gentleman III or at the YWCA,” says Mark.
She says for donations to the Saturday event, she would take donations until Friday afternoon.

Share this story:

3
-2
Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments