Sara Kumetz turned her career around 12 years ago: she left advertising design and founded a company to provide image consultancy. Soon, in her client portfolio there were several company executives who hired her to teach courses to the sales areas or for personalized advice. Each year he gave workshops to a dozen companies, such as PepsiCo, Price Shoes or Univisión.
But amid the coronavirus pandemic, which led many people to work at home, and interact with customers, employees and suppliers from a screen, Kumetz decided to take another turn. Thus, he created an application from where people could have image consultancy and buy clothes, makeup and accessories to create outfits without leaving home.
In October, the entrepreneur launched the Outfit 365 application, which in its first three months added 15,000 subscribers, the majority in Mexico (70%), but also in the United States and Europe.
In these markets, fashion has been among the categories most affected by the coronavirus pandemic. In Mexico alone, sales of clothing and accessories in physical stores fell 27% in 2020, according to data from the National Association of Self-service and Department Stores (ANTAD), which groups chains such as
Many consumers stopped buying these products to refocus their spending on other essentials, but even those who wanted to spend on clothes, shoes and accessories found stores closed. In the midst of restrictions, electronic commerce became, for several months, the only alternative to satisfy the desire for new clothes.
Kumetz saw a business opportunity in it. From its app, people can find suggestions for dressing up for every occasion, from a zoom meeting to a trip to the beach, based on their body shape, colorimetry, and style. An algorithm assembles the outfits with real clothes and accessories, from 130 brands, based on the information provided by the users, such as gender, age, body shape, eye color, hair and skin.
The application redirects users to online stores of the brands recommended by the algorithm, from where users can purchase the displayed garments or accessories. An opportunity for retailers to attract new customers beyond their stores.
“Outfit 365 shows options that users might never have been encouraged to try. Maybe they didn’t have a certain brand in mind and when they went to buy a garment at a mall they never visited that store, “says Kumetz.
With this argument, the entrepreneur has begun to monetize her application. A dozen brands are already willing to pay to be shown among the first styling options that the algorithm shows users.
Another source of income is the payments within the application: although the download is free, customers can pay 100 pesos per month to obtain some premium services, such as coupons from the brands with which the application has an agreement or online image consulting.
Most of the app downloads have been made by women (65%) between the ages of 20 and 35.
Even though shoppers loved manipulating clothes to really know how they fit and how they felt wearing them, in recent months they have gotten used to buying clothes online faster than other categories, such as vehicles or furniture.
A survey conducted by the Mexican Association for Online Sales, and presented last week, shows that 57% of Mexicans already prefer to buy clothes online rather than in a physical store. This category is the second most widely sold in online channels, after food prepared at home.
Kumetz, however, sees a shift in buying trends. “Now consumers are more selective, looking for specific garments for specific moments, rather than making impulse purchases, which was a bit like what happened when you walked through a mall.” Its application seeks to make it easier for customers to make their purchase decision.
