Many high school girls dream of attending their prom in a flowing gown with sequins and sparkling jewelry.
However, purchasing a dress and finding matching accessories comes at a price that some cannot afford. With the opening of Miranda Schick’s prom shop, finding the perfect dress is possible.
MIRANDA SCHICK, a marketing coordinator at Centreville High School, opened the Fair Oaks Prom Dress Shop where girls, who are not as financially secure as others, can find a prom dress that catches their fancy for free.
“Even though Fairfax County is wealthy, people tend to forget that some girls aren’t fortunate enough to afford a dress, or get their hair and nails done,” said Schick. “Many girls wear their prom dress only once, so why not set up an exchange system where you can donate a relatively new dress to another girl who’s in need of one.”
The shop, which first opened up last year, was open for the last two weeks of April and the first two weeks of May this year. The shop actually closed and the remaining dresses were moved out on May 25. Within the four weeks that the shop was open, almost 100 girls, from as far as Maryland and all over Fairfax County, came to the shop. Seventy-three girls found and purchased a dress, almost double the number of girls that found dresses last year.
Students not only had a wide selection of 500 dresses to choose from, but the shop also displayed various shoes, evening purses, and jewelry. Teacher and adult volunteers were present at the store to assist the girls with choosing the right dress or matching shoes.
Although the shop showcased prom dresses and did not include men’s tuxedoes, however it provided the girls with $20 coupons to give to their dates.
THE SHOP, which was located in a vacant spot near Payless, was also used to hold academy classes until June 5. Schick taught a retail marketing class at the shop. The students were able to apply the knowledge they learned in class by helping out with setting up the prom shop. This program was called Classroom on the Mall.
“The students did hands-on types of things,” said Schick. “Kids get to combine what they learned in school and in the class and apply it to real life.”
Opening the prom shop and holding classes at the mall was an ingenious way to help those who were in need of a prom dress and provide the students with an opportunity to gain hands-on experience dealing with marketing and fashion.
“It was a good way for our students to get involved in community service,” said Schick. “They also got to utilize the knowledge they learned in the classroom in a hands-on way.”