Knot Standard, a seller of premium custom men’s wear, has introduced a virtual showroom experience known as the “Stylist Store,” giving new and existing shoppers alike a personalized wardrobe and recommendation portal accessible via e-commerce and mobile.
The Stylist Store is the latest launch from the direct-to-consumer brand aimed at redefining the custom experience through various channels, whether it’s through the in-person, AI-powered Style Wall or its remote Digital Measuring App.
The new feature is designed to be the bridge between the made-to-measure brand’s 10 U.S. showrooms and its online presence. It is also, in part, a return to the brand’s online-only origin, and allows Knot Standard to replicate the in-person specialized experience to show clients a full order history of previous custom purchases.
As part of the Stylist Store experience, consumers gain a direct line of communication with their Style Advisor, an array of personalized features and new product offerings, and way to track products and orders, all in one place.
“For half a decade, Knot Standard has used our extensive design and fitting datasets to power the most advanced custom men’s wear experience available, and to build unrivaled relationships with our clients,” Matthew Mueller, president and co-founder of Knot Standard said in a statement. “Now, for the first time, we are able to deliver that entire experience online. From our Digital Measuring App and Virtual Appointments, to QR-coded products and daily wardrobe advice from a personal Style Advisor—everything we offer is seamlessly available to any client, anywhere in the world.”
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Knot Standard intends to use the digital Stylist Store experiences to facilitate appointments in its brick-and-mortar showrooms, which all include the voice-activated Style Walls, which are eight-to 12-feet long by eight-feet high and feature life-size renderings of styles that change as customers select features. They allow store associates to show shoppers what a custom piece will look like before it’s made.
In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, Knot Standard was one of many suit retailers that had to adapt their business models to a more digitally driven environment, but the company’s roots in online retail made it easier to transition.
Last June, Knot Standard unveiled its AI-powered, contactless Digital Measuring App so that customers can measure themselves without the need to go for an in-store consultation. The feature is designed to determine exact measurements from a few, simple photos submitted through the app. Once measurements are submitted into the system, creating a unique digital pattern, the retailer recommends fitting items and gives the shopper the option to connect with a Style Advisor either online or in person.
The voice-activated style walls, which are 8- to 12-feet long by 8-feet high, feature life-size renderings of styles that change as customers select features. They allow store associates to show shoppers what a custom piece will look like before it’s made.
The moves taken by Knot Standard reflect the changes in modern customer experiences, and are what attracted investors like Provenance and Decathlon Partners in the first place. In 2018, Provenance took an estimate $15 million stake in the men’s wear company, with founder Anthony Choe later telling Sourcing Journal that the business had “the best customer unit economics that’s nothing like we’ve seen in apparel.” He also lauded the brand for its “best in class” average order value, indicating that customers that are loyal to the business provide excellent value in comparison to the money spent to acquire them.
Given the ability to understand the customer’s needs from both a data-driven standpoint and an in-person consulting perspective, Knot Standard appears to have created a new advantage with its digital Stylist Store, in that it can now build out its recommendation engine for present and new customers alike.
Knot Standard says it will continue to add new features to the Stylist Store as the retailer tests and learns from clients and their Style Advisors.