Founders spotlight:
Mia Garcia
inside mia garcia’s vision for the dress code club
By: Elaisa Villegas
Clothes tell stories, but leaders make legacies. Mia Garcia, the founder of The Dress Code Club, built a space where fashion is more than just clothing. It is a community in motion, driven by ambition, work ethic and a shared pursuit of the industry. Garcia created The Dress Code Club out of a desire for a stronger, more intentional business community. While studying at the University of Houston, she felt there was a lack of initiative and career-focused opportunities for students interested in fashion.
“I see the dress code club as a recruiting and training platform for luxury fashion"
-Mia Garcia
Garcia envisioned The Dress Code Club as a collaborative space where students could explore fashion and business intersections. Her vision was to create an organization where business students at the University of Houston were able utilize their business degrees and grow their experience to land business roles within the industry.
“I wanted to create a strong sense of community that blended different styles and ideas about what fashion is, what it’s doing now, and where it’s going” she says.
The name “The Dress Code Club” itself came unexpectedly, a phrase her mother mentioned that ultimately captured the structure and identity she envisioned for the organization. The concept behind the organizations dress codes was rooted with intention. By encouraging members to dress with purpose at events, the club recreated the atmosphere students might encounter in industry spaces, where presentation is often part of the job. When brands visit the university to recruit interns, the dress codes shift depending on the brand they are engaging with. By applying their academic knowledge through luxury fashion internships, members gain practical skills while demonstrating the capability that University of Houston students bring to the fashion industry.
At just 20 years old, Mia stepped into the fashion industry and immediately knew that’s where she belonged. Garcia has gained industry exposure, including experience during Paris Fashion Week with Glass Cypress and working alongside the Petra Stellam team with marketing campaign work. Garcia also learned about the complexity of fashion beyond design from working along side industry professionals through her internships.
Dream it
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Dream it 〰️
“Fashion is a business at the end of the day,” Garcia said, emphasizing that design exists alongside supply chains, craftsmanship and finance. She explains how there is a lot that goes behind the scenes within the fashion industry, from production logistics to marketing strategies.
Building the organization required persistence, planning, consistency and above all execution of turning ideas into real opportunities for students, all which are qualities she credits to her strong, inherited work ethic and commitment to creating this space for individuals whose goal is to work in the industry. Fashion, she says, has always been where she feels most like herself. Building the organization became a way to turn that personal safe space into a shared one.
Encouragement from peers and the successes of students, some whom began working for luxury brands in Houston, helped Garcia understand the tangible difference the organization was making. She also shares how seeing students from diverse fields develop an interest in fashion has reinforced her belief in the club’s ability to inspire professional growth.
“I’ll never forget it. Students coming to me and saying thank you for starting the organization” Garcia says as she recalls students approaching her, expressing gratitude. Many had been accepted to more industry connected universities but couldn't afford tuition or didn’t want to put a financial strain on their families. Students seeing an organization like The Dress Code Club at The University of Houston gave them hope to still make their dream career come true.
“It was really touching to be that hope” she adds.
Looking back, she says the greatest reward has been seeing the organization takes on a life of its own. What started as an idea became a community where students feel encouraged to discover where they belong in fashion. Through shared experiences and structured events, members have gained confidence to see themselves not just as observers, but as contributors to the industry.
The Dress Code Club has become a space for students who dream of going into the fashion industry and are passionate for the work required to succeed in it. It encourages members to develop the industry knowledge and worth ethic needed in order to become valuable assets for fashion and business careers. The University of Houston students have the chance to take what they’ve learned in their business courses and apply them to the fashion industry. Garcia hopes The Dress Code Club will continue to evolve, inspiring the next generation of fashion leaders to step into these opportunities and continue the legacy of success.
