Dress for Success and JCPenney Encourage Shoppers to ‘Round Up’ in February

Feb. 5, 2013 - PRLog -- As part of its charitable giving program, jcp cares, jcpenney is inviting its customers to round up their purchases in February to the nearest whole dollar and donate the difference to benefit Dress for Success, an organization that promotes economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support and the career development tools to help women thrive in work and in life. Through its dedicated services and programs Dress for Success addresses every phase of a woman’s career – from being unemployed and searching, to recently employed and adjusting, to gainfully employed and succeeding.

“A cornerstone component of Dress for Success is the idea of people helping people – that we must all work together to succeed. One of the best things about this partnership with jcpenney is that it calls the community into action. Anyone and everyone can play a role in helping an unemployed woman enter the workforce, which we know helps her, her family, her community and our economy,” said Joi Gordon, CEO of Dress for Success Worldwide. “We recognize that there are an immeasurable number of obstacles that women face in today’s economic climate and, with jcpenney’s support, we will be able to expand the assistance that we provide to more than 65,000 women each year to overcome them.”

While jcp cares is an established charitable giving program, this partnership with Dress for Success will be the first time that shoppers will be able to round up their purchases on jcp.com, allowing consumers throughout the country to easily support Dress for Success when shopping online.

“We are thrilled to be supporting Dress for Success this month,” said Miki Woodard, president of jcp cares and vice president of philanthropy at jcpenney. “Today more than *7.3 percent of adult women are still unemployed. By rounding up their purchases, jcpenney shoppers will have a personal hand in helping disadvantaged women take the next step in their path toward professional fulfillment and, ultimately, economic independence.”

jcpenney customers can also support Dress for Success through the Facebook social game, WeTopia. Furthermore, customers can make donations to Dress for Success online at jcp.com/jcpcares and find out more information about jcpenney’s philanthropic commitments.

About Dress for Success

Dress for Success is an international nonprofit organization that promotes the economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support and the career development tools to help women thrive in work and in life. Since starting operations in 1997, Dress for Success has expanded to more than 120 cities in 13 countries. To date, Dress for Success has helped more than 650,000 women work towards self-sufficiency. Visit http://www.dressforsuccess.org to learn more.

About Missouri-based affiliates: Dress for Success Midwest & Dress for Success Kansas City

The Missouri-based Dress for Success Midwest and Dress for Success Kansas City affiliates are committed to breaking the cycle of poverty through hope, resources and a plan, enabling participants to break through the glass ceiling of poverty and earn a living wage to support themselves and their families, while ensuring their children a brighter future.  These Dress for Success affiliates are programs of Connections to Success, an umbrella organization serving the St. Louis, MO, Kansas City, MO and Kansas City, KS regions. For more information on Connections to Success, visit http://www.connectionstosuccess.org

About jcpenney

More than a century ago, James Cash Penney founded his company on the principle of the Golden Rule: treat others the way you’d like to be treated – Fair and Square. His legacy continuities to this day, as J.C. Penney Company, Inc.  boldly transforms the retail experience across 1,100 stores and jcp.com to become America’s favorite store. Focused on making the customer experience better every day, jcpenney is dreaming up new ways to make customers love shopping again. On every visit, customers will discover great prices every day in a unique Shops environment that features exceptionally curated merchandise, a dynamic presentation and unmatched customer service. For more information, visit us at jcp.com

*According to data from Bureau of Labor Statistics.