When I first heard of StitchFix, I was slightly obsessed. I was listening to a podcast where the host was interviewing a successful business woman and asking her for her best tips and resources to keep her life organized and remain productive. She mentioned Stitch Fix and I immediately had to look it up.
Basically, Stitch Fix is a service that shops for you based on your style preferences and sends you clothing to check out and purchase. Stich Fix users have to pay a styling fee of $20 which can apply to their purchase if they decide to buy any clothing items the stylish picks out. If they decide to pass on the items, they can but still have to pay the $20 styling fee.
You can order your clothing ‘fix’ whenever it’s convenient for you or set up automatic shipments whether it’s every 2-3 weeks, every month, or every three months.
The True Cost of Stitch Fix
From the outside looking in, Stitch Fix sounds like a great service. Having a personal stylist shop for you and handpick clothing items that match your preferences certainly sounds like the royal treatment. While I still like clothes, I find it hard to make time to shop and sometimes just don’t want to deal with the hassle.
However, once I tried Stitch Fix and realized how much it would really cost me, I realized I probably couldn’t afford it. Sure Stitch Fix only charges a base fee of $20 per shipment every time you order a fix. However, the clothing they send you often costs way more than that, and while applying $20 as a discount to the final price might help, it doesn’t change the fact that the average Stitch Fix piece costs $55. When you buy all 5 pieces that Stitch Fix sends you, you’ll receive 25% off your purchase but you could very well be paying $100+ for a single outfit.
If you don’t have that type of money to dish out regularly, Stitch Fix may not be the right service for you. On the bright side, there is a cheaper version of Stitch Fix and some additional alternatives to look into.
Lele Tote
Lele Tote is a service similar to Stitch Fix but it allows you to rent your clothes for as long as you want. With Lele Tote, you still have a virtual stylist and are sent 3 clothing items per shipment. Users pay $49 per month so if you want to make the most out of this service, you can wear your items a few times then send them back before the month is up.
You can also customize the pieces you receive and keep the items you want in your closet with this service.
Gwynnie Bee
Gwynnie Bee is a clothing subscription service for women who wear sizes 10-32. Similar to Lele Tote, it allows you to rent clothing for a monthly fee and purchase items you’d like to keep. There is a 30-day free trial and after that, it costs $49/month to rent 1 piece, $69/month to rent 2 pieces, and $95/month to rent a total of 3 pieces.
The Cheapest Alternative Option to Stitch Fix
I’m really going to just be blunt and say that these clothing subscription services are not going to be in everyone’s budget no matter how ‘budget friendly’ they seem. If you’re looking for an affordable alternative to Stitch Fix, you may very well just have to shop for your own clothing the traditional way
Having a personal stylist and clothing sent straight to your door sounds nice, but you must realize that you have to pay extra for this type of convenient service. If you figure your money would be best spent elsewhere in your budget or you just don’t shop much to begin with, consider buying your clothes online for cheap at stores like ThredUp and Twice. Granted, these stores offer gently used clothing, everything is in good condition and they even offer brand names.
Plus, by shopping online, you can save time and the hassle associated with searching for deals in retail stores.
Whatever option you choose, be realistic about your budget and carefully weigh the pros and cons.
Have you ever tried Stitch Fix or any other clothing subscription service? Why or why not?
3 comments
I purchased a yearly subscription to stitchfix at $50 not a bad deal for them. The clothes on average went up $20.00 unfortunately. I will be getting rid of it after my year is up. They were actually sending me items ($43-$68) I have found the exact same style and brand at Ross for $8-$10.
Check out dressjungle.com! It’s a personal styling service + curated outfit website with ONLY items from Amazon.com (most are prime eligible and reasonably priced). As of right now, it’s free to have an outfit styled for you by a personal stylist based on your sizes, style, etc. Later on, it will still be WAY cheaper than Stitch Fix etc with no subscription (and no markup on the clothes, I found that the clothes from services like Stitch Fix and Le Tote were WAY over my budget!).
I have used Dia & Co. They operate in pretty much the same manner as Stitch Fix. https://www.dia.com/r/4xdi is my affiliate link. Pretty much everything you say about Stitch Fix is true about them. However, I have gotten some nice pieces I would not have otherwise tried (due to price I’ll admit) much less purchased and I’ve learned about some good places to get plus-sized clothing.
As far a less expensive alternative, other than thredup, I don’t see you mentioning any. Those rental services cost less per month than getting a StichFix or Dia Box every month, but far more than actually buying the clothes. For $49 I can buy a piece of clothing to have forever. If you are looking for a less expensive alternative, find an online retailer you like (I like Dress Barn) that offers free shipping and free returns. Order $200-250 worth of clothes. When the box comes, try them on. Return the ones you don’t like.