Smart Works Newcastle

What Smart Works Newcastle does

Smart Works Newcastle (now trading as Smart Works North East) is a UK-registered charity founded in 2018 that supports unemployed women in North East England into employment through a two-part intervention: providing high-quality interview-appropriate clothing free of charge and delivering one-to-one coaching on interview technique and professional presentation. The service is delivered in person at a centre staffed by approximately five employees, supported by trained volunteers, and accessed via referrals from JobCentre Plus, local authorities, and partner employers. Since 2018 the centre has supported more than 3,700 women, with 68% of clients securing employment following the intervention; nationally the Smart Works network has supported over 35,000 women.

The organisation has no proprietary technology platform — its service is labour- and inventory-intensive, reliant on donated clothing, volunteer coaches, and physical dressing-room infrastructure. It does not sell or license any product or software; its "delivery model" is a structured charity programme combining wardrobe provision, interview preparation, and post-interview follow-up. The charity participates in the wider Smart Works UK federation but operates with local autonomy on fundraising and partner engagement.

The funding model is multi-stream and typical of UK charities: individual donations, corporate partnerships (notably an 11-year relationship with Bobbi Brown that has raised approximately £1M cumulatively), grant funding, and proceeds from donated clothing resale. Additional revenue comes from corporate membership schemes and high-profile patron endorsements — including The Duchess of Sussex at the national level. The 2025 rebrand to Smart Works North East and the launch of a 2025-2030 Five-Year Strategy indicate an active expansion phase targeting a broader North East catchment and more formalised corporate fundraising tiers. The organisation received the King's Award for Voluntary Service in 2025.

Name

Smart Works Newcastle

Legal name

Smart Works Newcastle

Website

https://newcastle.smartworks.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Smart Works Newcastle is a UK charity founded in 2018 that provides free interview clothing and one-to-one coaching to unemployed women in North East England, supporting over 3,700 women with a 68% job-placement rate.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Women's Employment Services

NAICS

Vocational Rehabilitation Services (6243), Employment Placement Agencies (561311)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Interview Coaching & Hiring Process Preparation (BPACAOAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Personal Color Analysis & Style Consulting (HSACAJAD)

Keywords

• Charity employment services
• Interview preparation
• Career coaching
• Workforce development
• Women's empowerment

Headquarters

HQ city

Newcastle upon Tyne

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations: Monetary donations from individuals through monthly or one-off donations. Donation tiers of £10, £20, £50, £100 and other amounts. Also includes clothing donations from individuals and corporate partners.
2. Fashion Sales: Pop-up fashion sales selling donated clothing at discounted prices. 100% of proceeds go to Smart Works. Features brands like Rixo, Varley, Mint Velvet, Fred Perry x Margaret Howell.
3. Membership - North East Collective: Monthly membership at £10/month providing exclusive networking opportunities, early access to events, CSR opportunities, and invites to annual round table discussions.
4. Corporate Partnerships: Partnerships with organisations providing funding, clothing donations, volunteering support, and employee engagement. Includes event sponsorship, corporate volunteering, charity of the year programmes, and brand partnerships.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Smart Works Newcastle (now Smart Works North East) provides a free, comprehensive service combining high-quality interview clothing with expert interview coaching to help unemployed women in the North East of England secure employment. The core offering is a two-hour Interview Dressing and Preparation appointment pairing a 60-minute dressing consultation with a 60-minute personalised interview coaching session, supported by Career Coaching for clients without interviews, a Second Dressing service for newly employed clients, and virtual appointments for remote access.

Product overview

Smart Works Newcastle (now Smart Works North East) operates as a UK-wide charity with a network of 10 centres across England and Scotland. The organization offers a unified service centered on helping unemployed women secure employment through two core components: Interview Dressing and Preparation (a 2-hour appointment combining wardrobe styling and interview coaching) and Career Coaching (for clients who need help securing interviews). These services are supported by a Second Dressing program for newly employed clients, and a Virtual Service for remote access. The organization supplements its core services with fundraising activities including Fashion Sales events, a membership Collective, corporate volunteering programs, and brand partnerships such as the long-standing Pretty Powerful partnership with Bobbi Brown. Client engagement is enhanced through a Client Advisory Group and Client Champion Program, while the Smart Works Unemployment Index provides annual research on women's employment experiences.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Interview Dressing and Preparation Service A two-hour appointment combining a 60-minute professional dressing consultation with trained volunteers to select a high-quality interview outfit, followed by a 60-minute one-to-one interview coaching session with an expert coach. Provided free of charge to unemployed women with scheduled interviews; clothing is the client's to keep.
• Career Coaching A dedicated 60-minute career coaching session to help clients secure an interview, with support on CV writing, cover letter development, and skills enhancement. Once an interview is scheduled, the client can return for Interview Dressing and Preparation. Free of charge.
• Second Dressing A capsule working wardrobe provided to clients once they secure employment, helping them start at their new workplace. Available regardless of how long ago their original appointment was. Free of charge.
• Virtual Service Remote access to Smart Works services via Zoom for clients unable to visit a physical centre, including virtual dressing consultations and coaching sessions. Free of charge.
• Fashion Sales Pop-up fashion sales events featuring donated clothing from retail partners at up to 70% off RRP, featuring brands such as Rixo, Varley, Mint Velvet, and Fred Perry x Margaret Howell. 100% of proceeds fund Smart Works services for unemployed women.
• North East Collective Membership A monthly membership programme at £10/month providing exclusive networking opportunities, early access to event tickets, CSR opportunities, annual round table discussions, and discounted entries to sporting events for supporters in the North East.
• Team Volunteering Sessions Bespoke team volunteering opportunities for corporate partners at Smart Works centres, including stock sorting, event volunteering, and service delivery support. Priced at £500 + VAT per group session.

Quantifiable outcome

• 68% of clients secured employment after interview support
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered transformational, primary and core.

• Bank of AmericatransformationalStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Bank of America supports Smart Works Career Coaching programme with significant funding and added employee volunteering and engagement. Career Coaching was introduced in 2020 in response to client demand to help women with tailored advice and support prior to securing an interview.
• Bobbi Brown CosmeticstransformationalStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Bobbi Brown Cosmetics has stood proudly beside Smart Works for over 11 years, providing invaluable support through the 'Pretty Powerful' partnership. Each year, Bobbi Brown Cosmetics produces a limited edition 'Pretty Powerful' product, with 100% of RRP from every sale donated to Smart Works. In 2023, the campaign celebrated its 10th anniversary and achieved £1 million milestone. Bobbi Brown PRO Artists also dedicate time to support clients with makeup lessons and events.
• AccentureprimaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerAccenture has supported Smart Works North East for 3 consecutive years providing funding, volunteering, and has delivered both Digital Skills workshops and CV workshops directly to Smart Works North East clients.
• BarbourprimaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth Shields founded retailer Barbour supports Smart Works North East with funding, clothing donations, volunteering hours. For the last 3 years they have supported 11 clients into roles as Trainee Machinists in the Barbour factory in South Shields. Barbour is a Gold Partner.
• END.primaryGTM or Marketing PartnerNorth East retailer END. has generously donated womenswear for client wardrobe and menswear for fashion sales and Vinted page. A volunteer from END. comes in weekly to support with selling operations.
• Newcastle Building SocietyprimaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerNewcastle Building Society has supported Smart Works with funding and volunteering and are always on hand when ad-hoc support is needed. Partnership confirmed for a second year.
• Sigma Simple LifeprimaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn the third year of partnership with Sigma Simple Life, receiving financial support both financially and providing wellbeing platform 'DanceSing' which is available to all Smart Works staff, volunteers and clients.
• Fenwick NewcastleprimaryGTM or Marketing PartnerFenwick Newcastle has been a longstanding supporter of the mission, generously donating clothing and offering event space for a range of initiatives.
• GooglecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGoogle named Smart Works as their Charity of the Year 2024, recognizing the charity's national impact in supporting unemployed women.
• AJ BellcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAJ Bell is mentioned as a partner organisation alongside Google, Bobbi Brown, and Bank of America building award-winning, mutually beneficial partnerships with measurable impact.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Shaw Trust: A large UK employment charity providing vocational rehabilitation, training, and job-placement services to disadvantaged groups. Overlaps with Smart Works on workforce re-entry but at much greater scale and with broader scope beyond interview-specific support.
• Reed in Partnership: A major UK employment-services provider delivering welfare-to-work, coaching and training programmes commissioned by the DWP. Operates at significantly larger scale than Smart Works but addresses an overlapping female-unemployment audience.
• The Prince's Trust (Women Supporting Women / Enterprise programmes): A large UK youth and employment charity that runs programmes supporting young women into work and self-employment. Broader in scope and audience than Smart Works but overlaps materially on the female-unemployment-to-employment pathway.

Emerging players

• Working Wardrobe: A smaller US-based charity providing professional clothing and career support to women in need. Narrower geographic footprint than Smart Works but substantively similar wardrobe-plus-coaching service for unemployed women.

Direct peers

• Suited for Success: A UK charity providing free interview clothing and employment support to disadvantaged men and women, headquartered in Birmingham. Closest UK competitor offering a substantively similar wardrobe-plus-coaching model to unemployed job seekers.
• Smart Works London: The London regional centre of Smart Works and the originator of the model. It offers the same free interview clothing and coaching service to unemployed women in London under the same licensing arrangement, making it the most direct operational comparable to Smart Works North East.
• Smart Works Scotland: Smart Works' sister charity in Edinburgh providing the identical interview dressing and coaching service to unemployed women in Scotland. Same brand, mission, and service model under the same national licensing framework.
• Dress for Success Worldwide: The original global charity pioneering the 'interview suit + coaching' model for unemployed women. Operates affiliate programmes in multiple countries and is the international category creator most directly comparable to Smart Works' service design.
• Smart Works Birmingham: Another independent Smart Works regional centre delivering the same free interview clothing and career coaching service to unemployed women in the West Midlands under the shared Smart Works licensing model.

Others

• Smart Works Charity HQ (national body): The national umbrella body providing infrastructure, brand licensing, and shared fundraising across the 11 Smart Works centres. Not a direct operational peer but the governing counterparty for Smart Works North East under the licensing agreement.

Market position

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/smartworkshq
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCx3jdUwRwFZXmWhAzprne_Q
• Facebookfacebook.com/smartworkscharity
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/smart-works-newcastle
• Instagraminstagram.com/smartworkscharity/?hl=en

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Smart Works Newcastle