Summary
Stitch Fix and Tripadvisor recently partnered to help travelers dress for any destination, myself included.
A Google search of “Paris street style” results in a whole cache of chic looks like tailored jackets, sleek boots, and elegant wide-leg denim. However, when it came to actually packing for a recent trip to the iconic city, I couldn’t decide which direction to go in.
Stitch Fix and Tripadvisor Partnership
Enter Stitch Fix, the company that sends you styled clothes based on your requests. To customize selections for traveling even further, the brand recently partnered with Tripadvisor to offer customers a style quiz that aids in preparing for their next big trip.
The Travel Style Quiz
The idea for the quiz emerged after Stitch Fix discovered more than 90 percent of its customers planned to travel this summer. Moreover, over 80 percent admitted to overpacking (guilty as charged).
“At Stitch Fix, we rely on our clients’ feedback to identify ways we can better serve them,” Jenny Herr, the company’s head of fashion and trends, explained. “After discovering that nearly 100 percent of our clients plan to travel this summer, we were thrilled to leverage our expertise in personalization and trend forecasting with Tripadvisor’s rich travel insights to help travelers achieve their dream vacation looks.”
Personalized Styling Experience
Turned out, I’m not the only Stitch Fix customer headed to Paris this summer. In fact, nearly one in five Stitch Fix customers requested “Parisian style” for their summer outfits. Other European cities like London, Rome, and Barcelona are also high on customers’ wish lists, even as flight costs to Europe are as high as they’ve been in five years.
The quiz is available for a limited time and asks questions about travel preferences (dream destination, favorite vacation activity) as well as personal style. I took the quiz, prioritizing big cities over beach locales and describing my style with heavy patterns and textures, receiving the designation of “sophisticated city slicker” — perfect for my upcoming trip.
With that description in hand, I headed to the Stitch Fix website, inputted my quiz results in the stylist notes, and requested my first-ever Fix. A few days later, it arrived, and I couldn’t wait to unwrap it.
Outfits for Paris
Inside, my stylist, Ray, curated a collection of items in neutral tones. Ray even looked at my Instagram profile to recommend a favorite restaurant to visit while in Paris.
The more I used Stitch Fix, the more Ray understood my preferences. I fell in love with a fabulous halter-style forest green and cream striped shirt on the first try but chose to send back the remaining items for another round. When using Stitch Fix, customers pay a $20 styling fee, which is then applied to any item they choose to keep. Customers can exchange sizes for free or send back anything they don’t love. If they keep the entire Fix, they receive a 25 percent discount on the total.
In my second Fix, every single item was a hit, as if Ray had read my mind. I eagerly pulled out a pair of white woven slides, which I wore to a Broadway show in New York the night before my trip.
Once in Paris, I donned a pastel floral dress with puffed sleeves, paired with a white twist-handle bag for Sunday brunch at The Peninsula hotel, an opulent affair with a lavish buffet in the gorgeous Le Lobby restaurant. My dress harmonized beautifully with the delicate petals of the hydrangeas beneath the palatial chandelier and soaring ceilings.
The Fix included classic pieces such as a black strappy knit maxi dress, easy to dress up or down, and cream-colored pleated shorts that hit at the perfect length.
As I explored the city, I knew I had the ideal outfits for each occasion: a luxurious lunch at the two-Michelin starred L’Oiseau Blanc overlooking the Eiffel Tower, shopping at Printemps department store, dining beneath the Palais Garnier, and leisurely meandering around the city, admiring the iconic Haussmann buildings with their iron balconies. Consequently, having the outfits delivered already styled made packing remarkably easier — no Google search required.
