Ms Wood was the first client at Success Suits You, a fashion boutique that provides high-end clothing to help equip people for job interviews and then the workforce.
Founder Deb Sutton said the service, which launched 18 months ago, was initially slow to gain traction.
But now she snuck away during her lunch break to help fit people into donated work attire for their upcoming interviews.
Ms Wood said she was referred to the service after finding herself in a period of unemployment, solo parenting and on the benefit.
"I tried on so many clothes. Even when I was trying on clothes, they were knocking at the door saying I have something more for you," Ms Wood said with a laugh.
With help from the service, she got a job at the University of Otago.
"I walked out with a couple of outfits and a handbag that I still use every single day for work," she said.
Mrs Sutton said being dressed in appropriate work clothing had positive psychological impacts, adding the confidence necessary for an interview.
"You can see people’s shoulders go back, their head is held high — they come out of the changing room just beaming."
Apart from providing high-end clothing they also helped with interview coaching and CV writing.
She got the idea for the service when working at Work and Income and noticing clients were coming through without the appropriate clothing for job interviews or work.
Although Work and Income provided a clothing grant, there were restrictions where you could spend it, and people did not always know what they needed to buy for employment.
The service operated by receiving referrals from other agencies.
While Dress for Success, a global organisation with a similar set-up, only catered to females, Success Suits You catered to any gender.
"Our client base is about 40% male."
In a rented room in Stafford St, volunteers sorted through racks of donated clothing to find something that fitted right and was comfortable for the job seeker to try on and take home.
"A lot of the clothes we have donated to us [are from] the cream of the crop of Dunedin society. Some of the men’s suits we have still have their tags on."
Volunteer Vicki Renalson rolled off some of the designer labels that had been donated, listing top New Zealand designers Trelise Cooper, Kate Sylvester and Karen Walker.
"All beautiful clothing, gorgeous clothing — we’ve been very, very lucky," she said.
She described coming through the doors of Success Suits You as entering "a feel-good space".
"It’s rewarding when you’re working with youth and people that have fallen on hard times," she said.
The cost-of-living crisis meant they were also increasingly helping older people forced to return to work because they could not afford to pay the bills.
Mrs Sutton referred to the initiative as "a labour of love, a passion project", which she dedicated her evenings and weekends to.
Her aim was to find enough sponsorship, so they could employ a part-time co-ordinator to help run the service.
