Chatter

In Plum's Colour Series, we discussed how colour is still relevant and important for your day to day wardrobing – primarily so it matches you, but also so that things in your wardrobe go with other things! In this post and our next, we’ll be talking about how your body is relevant too, and for more than just fit.

When we’re working with our private clients at ICU, we notice that they tell us a lot about how they feel about their bodies. In our surveys to you at Plum, you shared with us that there are still certain areas that you are concerned about showing or not showing, and changes you might like to see in your own bodies.

Here’s the deal: at Plum and at ICU, we believe it’s never you, it’s always the clothes. What we mean by that is we believe your body is the perfect body to do whatever it is you’re meant to do here on the planet and the sooner you make friends with your body, the easier it is to dress with purpose. No longer are you yearning to look like someone else, no longer will you be frustrated by trying to put clothes on your body that just don’t work.

It’s our responsibility as designers to make sure there are things in our store that work with many different kinds of bodies, and that our staff really understand how to find the right fit for your unique loveliness. We’re learning about different kinds of bodies and learning how to see everyone with a beautiful perspective.

Each body is made up of different elements of design; these elements are present in any good design, from architecture to clothing. We are making sure that what we have available covers a lot of different bases so we can help you find something that works.

Here are the top five elements we look for in you and in our clothing so we can find the perfect match:

1. Scale – no, not the weight one. We look at your height and operate from the principle of congruity. That is to say, matching the scale of your body to the scale of things you put on, from the length of hemlines to the size of pockets and cuffs.
2. Proportion – we look at how your body is divided up between your upper and lower halves and see where different garments need to sit on your body to make them work well.
3. Line – bodies have a lot of great lines, just ask any artist! We love to see if your lines are curvy or straight or somewhere in between and bring you clothing that suits you.
4. Shape – let’s face it, women are not fruit. We use a geometric approach, along with line, to see what general shapes exist in your body and what kinds of shapes in the garments we bring to you will work on your unique shape.
5. Texture – we want you to feel comfortable in the clothing you choose and texture is a part of that. If you’ve got gorgeous curly hair and lovely freckles, you’ve got texture, and vice versa. If you’re wearing fabric that matches your visual texture, you’ll create harmony!

We want you to see yourself the way we see you! A unique blend of beautiful elements of design that deserves to dress with purpose.

Read part 2 here.  ... read the full post and reader comments

This week I sat down with Ed des Roches (who owns Plum with his wife Kate O'Brien) to ask him a few questions about our new training program. Here's what he had to say:

Why did you see a need for this training program?

ED: The competition in fashion today seems to be led by getting more clothes for cheaper. I have read books and articles about how this ‘fast fashion’ trend is a race to the bottom. It is hard on our environment and unsustainable, so I thought if customers knew how to dress properly, with knowledge and with intent, they could buy fewer clothes but wear better quality garments. They could spend less money and be gentler on our environment if they knew how. That is when I thought Plum could play a role in teaching our customers how to dress with intent. It starts by training my staff in the fundamentals of dressing.

How do you think this will impact the customer experience in Plum stores?

ED: Plum has always been a retailer focused on individual customers. We want all customers to leave the store feeling sensational about how they look. It is part of our DNA and our culture. The training that we are giving our employees will give them insights and skills to be able to help individual customers even more than they do. It is a natural investment for me--to invest in our corporate knowledge.

Why was Katherine Lazaruk of ICU Image Consulting the right fit Plum’s program?

ED: It is one thing to have a dream and quite another to make the dream a reality and I needed help. I do not know of any other fashion retailer that has taken an interest in training staff with a program of how to actually dress customers properly so I needed someone that could help me create a program. When I got in touch with Katherine, we talked for a long time about the plan and I was very pleased with her depth of knowledge and how enthusiastic she was about helping Plum. In the end, there was one dream that we both had--we wanted to change the way all women thought about fashion, how to dress and how to purchase their clothing! It is a big idea, no doubt, but one we both believe in.

If you haven't heard about Plum's new training program, read about it here. Have any thoughts? Let us know!

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We did 3 surveys this past spring on all facets of shopping, styling and how you select the clothes you wear, and we learned so much about you! Thank you to those who filled out the survey; you were generous with your ideas and we’ve taken notes!

We liked how many of you thought a sales associate should act as your personal shopper: knowledgeable about products and skilled to wardrobe you if you request. They should be ready with options for how to wear garments and accessories that work with the look should you ask for help, but you don’t want them to hover over you while you browse. 

Many of you also claimed you wanted honest, insightful opinions about what works for you when asked and you appreciate genuine interactions with us, not some silly sales pitches or phony smiles that you can totally see through.

When I said we’ve been taking notes, I wasn’t kidding. We have some exciting new developments at Plum as we continue to strive to put the right clothing on the right women, so stay tuned for upcoming posts!

We've got one last short survey for you and you could win a $150 gift certificate! Click here to enter.

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