Giving back, dressing up, feeling great
Fashion retail website UsTrendy.com founder Sam Sisakhti is a fighter. When he started his company, about 152 potential investors denied the young entrepreneur before he finally landed the cash needed to launch. He shares his story of resilience with area teens via a nonprofit Sisakhti launched last year called The Believe in Yourself Project, whose mission is to emphasize the importance of positive body image among young women.
As part of an ongoing national event series, Sisakhti will be giving away dresses (donated by his fashion vendors) at the Boys & Girls Clubs of America's South Boston location today.
“We hope to donate five to 10 thousand dresses this year. So far we have done a few hundred. We reach out to housing projects, low-incomearea community centers and Boys & Girls Clubs and have them put together a list of girls who are in need,” Sisakhti told us.
UsTrendy was founded in 2007 as an e-commerce platform for emerging designers. Many of the dresses are party or special occasion pieces, and some are pretty out-there flirty.
But the pretty little numbers given out today are sweet as can be and perfect for the girls, tweens and teens who'll be receiving them.
Sisakhti explains: “We make sure to provide the girls dresses which are very age-appropriate. The main age most of the girls receiving dresses tends to be mid- to late teenage years.”
Along with outfitting these young women, the organization will be setting up a mentorship program with those who may have struggled with body image in the past.
There's nothing more stylish than giving back to you community.
Learn more at www.ustrendy.com and www.believe inyourself.org. The donation kicks off today at 3:30 p.m. at South Boston Boys & Girls Club,
230 W. Sixth St.