- The original idea stemmed from the company Threads creating an app of this principle for men with busy lifestyles who don't have the time to shop and put outfits together. The article I found on the Business of Fashion website outlined their concept. 'Now, a London-based start-up called Thread is tackling the problem with a blend of man and machine, using intelligent algorithms to help professional, human stylists be more efficient and deliver personalised fashion recommendations at scale.' '“Thread gives people their own personal shopper for free to help them find the clothes they love,” said O’Neill. “It solves a problem I had personally for many years: I wanted to dress well, but I was busy and didn’t have time to shop regularly.
- The app works as such- Thread is free for consumers. After signing up, users are prompted to answer a detailed, multi-part questionnaire that asks them about their personal style, size, brand preferences, typical spend per product category, preferred fits, dressing habits and income. Ultimately, they are paired with a human stylist who (during business hours) engages them via live chat to further refine their profile, which contains over 30 different factors. Based on these profiles, an algorithm searches through a database of 10,000 hand-created outfits and sends users five new looks every Friday.
- Users are asked to rate the looks, further feeding the algorithm and refining their profile, and can choose to “try on” the items that they like, which Thread dispatches to them for free (for orders over £50, or about $80). “It’s free shipping both ways, and they only pay if they decide to keep it. We wanted to recreate the experience of a stylist dropping off the clothes to your house as much as possible,” said O’Neill. Users can also contact their stylists at any time for specific advice or hand-curated recommendations
- The concept here is that the app provides a free personal stylist on hand and even provides the clothes, taking the shopping experience to the next level. As men don't enjoy shopping either, this app brings them the best of both worlds.
There aren't half as many male fashion apps, magazines or styling content as there is for women, so potentially this is a good avenue to take. The main style stop for men is Mr Porter, the male equivalent to the female designer site Net-A-Porter. On their website they have a tab dedicated to Style where consumers can gain access to trends, how to wear it, advice, live chats to real style advisers etc. If the concept was to be brought to a man, Mr Porter would be perfect as they already engage in the styling side of things a lot. In addition, they already have a shopping app, which shows that their target audience use apps regularly and would be likely to use a similar personal styling app.
- There is a competitor for this sort of app in the form of 'Cool Guy' an app that lets the user curate outfits using online content and his wardrobe. 'The men's version of Stylish Girl, Cool Guy lets you create outfits, pack for trips, and search through your own closet to create looks. There's also a news section that curates content from fashion blogs and magazines, as well as a shopping feature where you can add items to your wish list and see when they go on sale' (Article link here) The following features are all something I would consider putting in my own app.
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