Hello from the City by the Bay!
I have the super fun opportunity this week to visit the Stitch Fix headquarters in San Francisco! I’m here with three other bloggers (plus Jenna, who’s local!), touring hq, getting lost in the samples room, giving feedback, meeting all of the crazy smart and creative people who make the magic happen, and generally enjoying my very first visit to California!
We are actually staying in a 4-bedroom house all together and it feels sort of like Real World – but with laptops and lots of shoes and two very stylishly dressed mannequins keeping us company in the dining room!
(Kacia, Me, Julie, Cotille, Gina)
We all traveled and arrived yesterday. (I mentioned on Instagram yesterday that in one day I saw flurries in Nashville, snow-capped mountains in Colorado, the canyons of northern Arizona, deserts of Nevada, the fountain show at the Bellagio on the Las Vegas strip (I had a 3-hour layover at LAS, so I left the airport for a bit to see what all the fuss was about), and hopefully the Pacific Ocean.<– which didn’t actually happen, but I saw the bay and that’s something!)
Aaaanyway… we all made it safe and sound and have had fun getting to know each other!
We spent today at the Stitch Fix HQ where we sat in on the daily “Flash”. Literally every morning there are lots of brand new things added to the inventory, so the buyers present all of the new things to the stylists, pointing out fit and style notes. We actually got to be the models for the Flash this morning, which naturally tempted us to run out of the building with the cute things we were wearing :)
After that, they had a few really fun styling activities for us, just to see what it’s like to style a fix based only on a person’s style profile. I styled “Erin”, a 5’6″ Boho/Casual with a “curvy chest”. I had to pick 10 things from the three racks they had pulled out for us and this is what I came up with:
It turned out that we were actually styling each other, and that “Erin” was Gina and that she really only loved one of the things I’d picked. Oops! I guess it’s maybe harder than it looked. (I’ll note that Kacia styled me and I loved 6 out of the 10 things she chose.)
We also got to spend some time with the buying team where they wheeled an entire rack of possible future garments in front of us to give hardcore honest feedback on every item they held up. It was honestly both so scary and so freeing to be that brutally honest about clothes and sizing and fabrics, and they loved all of the little notes and suggestions we made! I felt super heard and the whole thing made me really excited about what they have ahead for designs and fixes and those gloriously exciting mail days :)
We grabbed lunch at a local sandwich shop and sat down to eat together in Yerba Buena park.
Then, as a team we styled six new outfits – one for each of Stitch Fix’s style categories – and took them on the road for a tour of the city! For each style (Romantic, Preppy, Boho, Classic, Casual, and Edgy) we took the mannequin (named Quinn) for a mini photoshoot to cool places like the Full House park/house (what?!?!) and Lombard Street (the curviest road in the city) and the Palace of Fine Arts.
Can I just say how crazy it is that there seems to be like a 15-degree swing in temperature with every city block? Evidently they’re called “micro climates” and it must have something to do with how hilly it is. My goosebumps and sweat glands were so confused!
Tomorrow we’ll get to tour the Hizzy (aka: the warehouse), which, I imagine will have me making all kinds of crazy notes for requests to my stylist (hi, Margaret!) for my next 100 fixes! :)
And for fun, a primer/review about the joy of StitchFix:
Essentially, it’s an online personal stylist.
- You fill out a (free!) super thorough style profile (it’s fun!), and whenever you feel like it, you order a Fix. (See fun examples of my past Fixes right here.)
- Based on what you’ve told them about yourself in your style profile, your stylist selects five things that will flatter your shape, your coloring, and your style. StitchFix combines the brilliance of a carefully-deisgned algorithm with the personal touch of super knowledgable real people who read your notes and feedback to give you better and better fixes as they get to know you.
- When the goodies arrive at your door on the scheduled date, you wait ever-so-impatiently until naptime or shower time or whatever. THEN, you get to try everything on!
- See what works with what you already have in your closet. See what the style cards suggest for how to wear things (you might be surprised!). Take photos, text them to your friends or instagram them or blog them, and ask their opinion! (Or sync fixes with a friend and try them on together!) It’s all about the experience. It’s fun!
- Once you’ve picked your keepers, you simply hang the things you love in your closet (or wear them straight out of the box, let’s be honest!), and return what you didn’t love (if anything).
- Shipping is free both ways. The styling fee is $20/fix and you can just apply that amount toward whatever you buy.
It’s low risk, high fun! And you might even learn a thing or two about yourself!
Have an awesome day, friends! G’night!
Okay, I have GOT to know, while you’re out there can you please ask if it is really reasonable for a 22 week pregnant woman to start getting fixes now? But seriously. Why have I waited so long on this? You guys have been raving about it long enough and I know a ton of other people who just love it. Wish I could sign up today! I know what I’ll be doing next spring :)
You’re cute :) I have a friend (Blair McLeod from Wild & Precious – do you know her??) that wore StitchFix all the way through until her little boy was born! I think you would definitely need to tell your stylist about the bump, but there are lots of happy things that could work around it!
See you next week, new friend!! xoxo
I love the top you are wearing in these pics! Where is it from?
Thanks! It’s from Free People and I want it in every color!!! —> http://bit.ly/1fFpsSq
Okay, so I love the thought of stitch fix and tried it one time, but wasn’t too impressed. I didn’t keep anything in my first fix because I just felt like they were not me…if that makes sense. I almost felt like they just threw in some random clothes and sent it my way. Have you heard this from other people? And do you think it was just a bad batch? I wanna try it again…but I’m afraid it would happen again. I’d love any thoughts you have!
So funny, I actually didn’t keep anything in the first fix I got either! I really think it takes a curve sometime – if you left feedback for why you didn’t like each of the things you sent back, your stylist will learn you more and more each time. Feedback is hugely helpful. Oh, and linking to a Pinterest board is super helpful too so they can really get to know YOU!
I just want them to do plus sizes. :( Been waiting FOREVER. Is that in the future?
I think they go up to size 14 right now and I know they absolutely hear that people want more. Not sure what they have in store, but definitely know that you’re heard about that!
I love the idea of this! But I’m curious about the cost of items. We’re a one income family with a low budget for clothes every month. it’s not practical for me to spend $60 on one item on a whim in a month. So obviously for me, if have to save up for a fix. But how much is reasonable? Because I’d love to do this but the cost has me hung up.
The average cost of the items overall is about $65, but if you choose the lowest price point, it’s closer to $30-$40. Buying on a whim is definitely super fun, but StitchFix can also be really great for carefully building a solid wardrobe for people who don’t want to go nuts making their closet big – just strong. I’d absolutely tell your stylist if that is your goal, and I’ll be she’ll work with you to focus on stylish staples that are really versatile.
SO MUCH FUN!!!
I want them to do a men’s version for my husband. I love my stitch fixes but he needs some!
I know – me too!!! Wouldn’t that be fun?!
Yes.
You have the best life, Raechel!
Can you ask if they’ve looked into expanding into Canada? I know shipping costs might make that unrealistic.
I found you through Julie’s Blog – Peanut Butter FIngers. Now I have a new blog to follow. YEAH!! I am dying to know what top you have on in those pictures from Stitch Fix! I love it and must have it. Please let me know!
Oh fun – welcome Suzanne!! The top is the Drippy Jersey Dress at Free People. I want it in every color :)
Love the boots you have on with the black leggings. I am obsessed with Stitch Fix. Thanks for doing a nice thorough post on your experience. What label are your boots and where are they from? Thanks!
Thanks Jill – it was super fun! The boots are Frye, they Phillip Harness, I think. I got them last year at Belk when they had their boot sale and LOVE them!
found your link off of “she reads truth” — absolutely loving your blog. God bless!
xx