A partnership between Raiders’ Closet and Dillard’s department stores could result in scores of well-dressed millennials lining up for jobs.

The Stones River Mall location of Dillard’s in Murfreesboro will conduct a Trunk Show Friday, Oct. 7, to support Raiders’ Closet, a nonprofit MTSU service that provides students with free, appropriate business attire for job interviews.

Customers who donate a gently used suit or sport coat to Raiders’ Closet during the Trunk Show will receive a discount on items they purchase from Dillard’s during the show, as well as a free shirt and tie with each purchase of a made-to-measure suit.

Devon Wallace

“I think it’s important for, especially me, being in the College of Business, to educate … my peers on how to present themselves, how to dress for success, and, really, how to crush that interview so they can stand out,” said Devon Wallace, a senior economics major from Hendersonville, Tennessee and manager of Dillard’s men’s department.

Calling it a chance for Wall Street to connect with Main Street, Wallace said the store will emphasize business suits by Hart, Schaffner & Marx, a company that was founded in 1887 in Chicago and makes all of its men’s wear in the United States.

The 22-year-old Wallace, who plans to graduate in December, manages 10 employees in a department that rings up $3 million in sales annually. He started out as a part-time sales associate during his sophomore year.

Wallace said he is concerned that his contemporaries are not well-versed in the art of dressing for success, which is particularly essential for acquiring that first job after graduation.

“Get something that’s very versatile, that fits you very, very well, in a fabric that’s going to last a long time,” Wallace advised. “I’ve seen even MTSU students come into Dillard’s eating ice cream, in a T-shirt, saying, ‘Are you guys hiring? I need a job.’”

Raiders’ Closet is located in Room 327 of MTSU’s Keathley University Center. It stocks business-appropriate suits, dresses, separates and accessories that students may obtain free of charge.

Both monetary and clothing donations for Raiders’ Closet are accepted from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays in Room N349 of the Business and Aerospace Building.

For more information, contact Dr. Virginia Hemby-Grubb, Raiders’ Closet founder and director and a professor of marketing in MTSU’s Jones College of Business, at 615-898-2369 or virginia.hemby-grubb@mtsu.edu.

— Gina K. Logue (gina.logue@mtsu.edu)