Professional guide

Connecting with the customer

What can you do, as a designer or clothing company, to make apparel more meaningful to your customer; thereby making them want to keep the clothes longer and making an impact on the environment by not turning fashion items in to textile waste? We found some advice that could make a difference.

The last time people - or rather the consumer  - stopped buying was in the 70's, a reaction to mass-production. In our day and age it's a combination of everything being so boringly the same and a financial crisis. So what can you do, to stay in business and still be a sustainable company? Selling less, yes, but with added value.

We don't pretend to have all the answers, but here are some of the ideas that have worked for others. And some that just drifted by. 

Your customer wants to feel involved. Listened to. With today's social media this is a must. The customer expects it. Most companies are used to talking to people, rather than with them. But some companies go the extra mile. After all, as Stella McCartney said in a recent interview: If someone puts down their hard-earned money on your product, you have to give them respect. It is nothing you should take for granted. She adds:"I'm one of the school of designers that tries to do timeless pieces, pieces that will stay with you forever. It's important to have things that you can fall back on in your wardrobe."

Here's another comment, from the president of Saks Fifth Avenue: People have changed their value system and their life-styles. Women are looking for products that do more for them, not singular-look products, rather clothes that get them through the day and to the weekend. Luxury used to be something men and women bought for a season, then threw out; those days are over.

Christine M. Daym who runs Lululemon Atheltica Inc tells how they name products after customers who come up with good ideas, of course letting them know about the contribution and the result. Having the feeling of being a co-designer is another. Nike and adidas has done it with running-shoes; why not clothes.

An idea developed for an internet-store was to make a virtual wardrobe for the customer, including all the items she or he bought, so that updating and styling online would be a piece of cake. For a store, the personal service of keeping an overview of what a customer has bought and suggest how to maximize the wardrobe, would certainly give loyalty and more. 

We also liked the executive who always signs his (!) emails "humble and hungry" rather than "best regards". At least the "humble" part.

A twig of Myrica gale, or Bog Myrtle, will keep the moth away

Also give concrete advice on storage - offer them a quality hanger that fits the outfit, and explain what is important and why. What you sell may need to be hung or folded properly, you could print this along with the washing-instructions as an extra service. Airing is a lost art you could revive. What about wardrobe management? Offer a quick Wardrobe 101 class. Moth-balls are not very environmentally friendly, but neither are moth-holes. When clothes get put away for summer (or winter) they must be clean to avoid attracting moths. A twig of Myrica gale, or Bog Myrtle, will keep the moth away, as well as the mosquitoes. So two-for-one there.

Customers also want to know who you are. They want more transparency, but maybe also more fun. It may be a sign of the times that the fun-loving label Moods of Norway have become a case at the Harvard Business School.