Fast Facts

The goal of Wings for Success is to enhance the financial independence and stability of women in need. Wings’ free programs are designed to provide clients with work-related apparel and to help build the confidence needed to obtain and sustain employment. Through nurturing clothing appointments, employment related workshops, or personalized employment guidance from volunteer career coaches, Wings for Success provides each client with the essentials that are critical for her success.

• Wings is the only program of its kind in Chester County, with 2 offices in Frazer & Kennett Square.
• In 2019, we were able to move our site in Kennett Square to a new location. This site is twice the size of our old one and is more accessible to the women we serve by having a bus stop in its shopping center. The site also provides us with something we never had before, a workshop/community room.
• In 2019, Wings served 849 women, a 12% increase over 2018, and has served over 12,000 women since its founding in 1997.
• 70% of our clients come from collaborative relationships with 80+ partner agencies. These agencies, mostly non-profits, offer programs related to domestic violence, substance abuse, homelessness, education and job training, food insecurity, and youth development.
  • The remaining 30% of our clients are generated from various direct outreach strategies or family and friends of existing clients.
• On a typical visit, a client receives a work-appropriate wardrobe which includes key pieces of clothing to be mixed and matched, including undergarments, shoes, handbags, accessories, and seasonal outerwear (as inventory allows).
• Wings outfitted 136 clients with necessary medical scrubs and nurse shoes for their employment in 2019.
• A conservative estimate of the value of clothing provided to clients in 2019 is more than $600,000.
• Wings consistently receives strong client self-confidence and satisfaction scores of 97% and 99% respectively.
• Operating with only four part-time employees, members of the Wings’ Board of Directors and a pool of 120 active volunteers together contributed over 10,000 hours in all areas of organizational operation.
• 59% of the women served in 2019 were currently employed when they came to us for assistance.
  • Of those women, 77% were categorized as below poverty by their annual income, 78% were single, and 62% had children.
• The percentage of Wings’ clients that come from the following counties: Chester 74%; Delaware 9%; Montgomery 7%; Philadelphia 3%; New Castle DE 5%, and other counties 2%.
• The ethnic breakdown of Wings clients is: African-American 32%; Caucasian 33%; Hispanic 25%; Asian 1%, and mixed race or unknown 9%.
• Wings’ clients range in age between 12 years to 65+ years old, but the majority of our clients are between the ages of 25-44.
  • The number of clients under the age of 25 increased by 10% in 2019, making this our second largest age group. This increase is credited to our partnerships with local universities and non-profits that refer young women with few resources.
• 40% of Wings clients earn less than $10K annual income, 24% of clients earn less than 20K, and 12% of clients earn less than 30K.