Subscription apparel retailer Stitch Fix acquired the patented technology and intellectual property of digital wardrobe styling firm Finery. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Finery’s technology used email receipt data to digitize a member’s wardrobe. Its technology linked its platform to a consumer’s email inbox to find the garments and populated her wardrobe digitally in her Finery account. It also tracked how long the member had to return products and whether or not she did return a product. The platform also gave apparel product recommendations based on a Finery style quiz and what she previously bought and returned.
The Finery platform is shutting down, a Stitch Fix spokeswoman says. Finery gave its undisclosed number of members until Sept. 6 to download their wardrobes. Stitch Fix did not acquire email addresses, wardrobe data or any of Finery members’ personal information, a Stitch Fix spokeswoman says.
Finery’s technology and mission closely aligns with the Stitch Fix brand, and the retailer is excited to experiment with the technology, the spokeswoman says.
“Some of our most successful product initiatives, like Style Shuffle, have emerged from experimentation with data science,” she says. “We’re excited to test and learn with Finery’s technology, to see how it can help us to serve our clients even better and continue to scale personalization.”
Stitch Fix, which uses technology and stylists to send shoppers a box of apparel based on previous purchases and a style quiz, has continued to grow its sales and profit. In its most recent earnings release, its online sales increased 29% to $408.9 million for its fiscal third quarter ending April 27, up from $317.0 million in the year-ago period. It also posted $7.0 million in profit.
Stitch Fix attributes a part of its growth to repeat shoppers, as in its fiscal second quarter ending Jan. 26, 88% of its sales were generated from repeat shoppers. Plus, in its most recent fiscal quarter, the retailer reported shoppers are spending 8% more than they did last year.
Stitch Fix is No. 64 in the Internet Retailer 2019 Top 500.