Nordstrom Improves "Assisted Commerce" By Acquiring Trunk Club
By Megan Zielinski, contributing writer
Nordstrom recently revealed it will acquire Trunk Club, a personalized men’s clothing service—further enhancing the shopping experience for Nordstrom male shoppers with the unique stylist assistance and fashionable selections the Trunk Club offers.
Recognizing the rapid growth and changes taking place in the men’s apparel division, Nordstrom is looking for ways to better serve customers by tailoring to each individual’s taste in style and making the shopping process effortless. “This complimentary service is an important and successful volume driver for us that our customers appreciate," said Erik Nordstrom. "What Trunk Club does adds to our service capabilities—we can learn from them about what they call 'assisted commerce' so we can continue to meet the evolving needs of customers."
With Trunk Club, “a real person will do all the work to make you look amazing.” Trunk Club includes 250 personal style experts who develop relationships with each customer to get a grasp of what their style choices may be. From the results gathered, the stylist selects high-end clothing for casual wear, special events, wardrobe upgrades or whatever occasion the customer requests—shipping out the customized trunk full of up to a total of eight pieces, from over 50 big-name brands including Ben Sherman, Billy Reid, ETON, theory, and GANT. Customers have 10 days to decide on purchases— perfect for the indecisive shopper, who often gets buyer’s remorse or feels pressured to make on-the-spot decisions. Unwanted items are simply returned, hassle-free, with no shipping charge. Satisfied customers can continue services with their previous stylist by communicating by phone, text, email, through website, and with the Trunk Club app, as their stylist will send another box full of recommendations upon request. The stylist service comes at no charge, customers only pay for the clothing they purchase. The average price ranges of Trunk Club clothing includes $170-$250 for a nice pair of properly fitted jeans, $100-$200 for casual, comfortable shirts, and $100-$300 for designer sweaters.
Trunk Club, just over five-years-old, incorporating style and services, is available for customers to experience through mobile, online, and in the Chicago, Dallas, Washington D.C. stores, with a new opening to take place in Los Angeles. At the showrooms, customers have the opportunity to meet one-on-one with their stylist.
“Nordstrom is stellar at many of the things we aim to improve on to offer our members the best possible service: inventory management, planning and logistics are great examples,” said Brian Spaly, Trunk Club CEO. “Nordstrom and Trunk Club share a philosophy dedicated to excellence in customer experience and we couldn’t be more thrilled to pursue that mission together.”