We may be entering a credit crunch, but personal shopping services are booming in popularity. As customers are becoming more cost conscious, they are increasingly employing the services of a personal shopper to ensure those precious pounds are well spent. Customers are searching for clothes that fit in with their existing wardrobe and making sure that what they purchase will not only go the distance but, are good value on a cost-per-wear basis. Add to this the tantalising offer of a personal stylist to whisk you round the shop for free, and thousands of customers are signing up to the ‘in-house’ services across the country.

Sounds great until you start to realise the actual cost of that free service. What if the person ‘advising’ you had no additional training than anyone else on the shop floor? What if that person worked on commission, gaining a higher paycheck for greater sales? Suddenly the flattering service they so tantalisingly offer, with the separate changing room, massive mirror and rack of specially chosen clothes (never from the sale section), isn’t quite so seductive.

For qualified and experienced style consultants across the country, it’s been an interesting dilemma, most of us have continued to work steadily, as the quality of the work speaks for itself. Some customers will always go for a free service, much like some people will always chose the cheapest builder. However, they rarely factor in the additional cost of having the work re-done.

The huge changing room to yourself in a brilliant weapon in the psychology of sales. Everyone looks smaller in a large room (most customers want to look slimmer), you then have a rack of clothes chosen ‘especially for you’, cue the British politeness of being obliged to agree with the sales person, as they have made the effort. The rooms are often white, making the clothes ‘pop’ out and appear more attractive. Then, add an enthusiastic ‘expert’ telling you how wonderful you look and it’s no surprise that most customers leave with bags full of shopping and an significantly lighter purse.

So, how do you let the the new customers know that you do get what you pay for and that the service we offer is actually better?

Customers are seeking advice because they don’t know what suits them. Many of my clients have been stuck in a rut and really have lost the ability to see themselves in a new light. Makeover shows work on the ‘wow’ factor where people undergo huge transformations but, it doesn’t always have to be such an ‘extreme makeover’ to create a massive impact. You can look 10lbs slimmer in the right clothes, surgery is not mandatory to looking better!

For the private style consultants, this just makes our job slightly easier, customers are increasingly saying they saw someone for free, but just didn’t feel they came away looking better. Many pulled out the clothes at home and didn’t get the desired reaction from partners, family and friends.

It might take customers slightly longer than before, as they go on the bargain detour, but quality will always win out.

The real value is always in qualified, experienced and perhaps most importantly independent advice.

For personal shopping services contact Chameleon Fridays.

Here are the best and worst from this month………………..

Cheryl Cole manages to achieve a great smart/casual look so many people find hard to pull off. The jeans are flatteringly straight, the widening horizontal lines are under the block colour of the blazer. And how perfect is that blazer? Fresh and bang on the nautical trend, great navy piping, but most importantly, look at the slightly diagonal stripes, further accentuating the waist. Cheryl manages to look stylish and feminine without trying too hard.

Great to see Sir Stuart Rose from Marks and Spencers making a statement in Esquires top 10 best dressed men. Most of the men on the list spend their featured time in bespoke suits, and to be fair a well cut suit transforms any man from zero to hero. What is exceptional about Stuart is his ability to still look great when regularly wearing off the peg suits from his own store. Here we can see him wearing cool colours next to his face to suit his colouring and makes the impact with a featured item of clothing, here being the tie. He has also ensured that any patterns are not fighting for attention, by keeping the tie and suit plain against the checked shirt. Top marks.

Oooooh Kim, not a good look for her. Despite having both an amazing figure and a beautiful face, it just goes to show how important dressing for your individual shape is. Kim has managed to look chunky of thigh, as her dress cuts at her widest leg point. The belt is just a bit too wide, so that rather than pulling the eye into the narrowest point it makes her waist look larger than it is. The horizontal banding adds even more width to the too tight dress and the shoes cut her off at the ankle further accentuating her thigh. Unfortunately, Kim looks trashy rather than sexy, with everything just too much.

“Here is Robert Cavalli, he is a designer so can do what he wants” – Esquire.
His status and cash may afford him anonymous blondes for photographs, but the style crimes are many. Firstly he has tucked in the shirt too tightly drawing attention to his bulging waist, the belt buckle drawing the eye to this even more. The collar is both shortening his neck and looks too tight. He’s managed to mix a gold shirt button with a silver buckle, it’s very hard to mix metals and look stylish (every so often it becomes fashionable though). The shirt is shiny making the vast expanse of his stomach even more attention grabbing, which incidentaly also highlights his man boobs to perfection.
DO NOT follow his lead.

Chameleon Friday’s