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Stores upgrade fitting rooms with uplifting messages
Astore’s fitting room is a small space that can have a big impact on how shoppers feel not only about the clothes they try on, but also about themselves.
“Some women would make selfdeprecating comments while trying on items,” says KC Kaluhiokalani, owner of urbanfitco boutique in Sewickley, which specializes in stylish activewear. “Due to societal pressure there is sometimes a lot of stress and anxiety when trying clothing on.”
So she decided to try to do something about it. With the help of local artist Erin Liposky of Erin Art Design, she changed her shop’s two fitting rooms to make them more welcoming, uplifting spaces — something that several retailers have been working on these days.
“When women shop, we want them to celebrate the skin they are in and feel beautiful,” Ms. Kaluhiokalani says.
She enlisted Ms. Liposky to add murals to the walls of her store’s fitting rooms. Colorful, handpainted flowers now bloom on the walls, while body- positive quotes encircle the mirrors. Customers also are invited to pen their own encouraging words on small adhesive slips of paper and stick them to the walls.
The murals were completed in late June, and shoppers started adding their messages to the walls in mid- July. Most shoppers have commented about these additions, Ms. Kaluhiokalani says.
“It seems that the fitting room makeover has created a positive environment that is encouraging shoppers to take their time rather than making them want to hurry up and run,” she adds. “I think it also created some mindfulness of the self talk we all have in our head when trying on clothes.”
Ms. Kaluhiokalani got the idea while scrolling through Instagram and spotting a photo of a fitting room inside an Aerie store. She noticed sticky notes with positive affirmations on them decorating the walls.
The # AerieREAL Girls Stick Together! campaign launched in August 2017. When shoppers enter the fitting room, there’s also a curtain in front of the mirror that reads, “Before you love what you see on the outside, you have to love who you are on the inside.” Aerie is American Eagle Outfitters’ intimates brand that’s headquartered on the South Side.
“We learned through our internal research that more than 60% of women were feeling negative thoughts in the fitting room when trying on bras, and we wanted to help combat that,” Stacey McCormick, Aerie senior vice president of marketing, said in an email. “We receive a lot of great content from this that we share on our social channels.”
Fitting rooms can be a “psychological land mine,” says Marge Laney, CEO of Houston- based Alert Tech. The company works with retailers to improve their fitting room experiences through adding technology to them and other strategies. They’re also a gold mine for retailers to learn more about their customers and to boost sales.
“The fitting room, in my opinion, is the most valuable square footage in every store. It’s the place where the highest conversion occurs,” she says, noting that shoppers who try something on are at least 70% more likely to buy it. Those who just browse merchandise on the floor are only 10% likely to make a purchase. At Aerie stores, customers are 75% more likely to commit to something if they try it on, according to Ms. McCormick, and the company has seen “an increase overall” as a result of its body- positive fitting room initiatives.
Some stores — particularly higher- end retailers — strive to elevate their fitting rooms with fancy upgrades. Nordstrom, Macy’s and Zara are among those that have experimented with or installed tablets, smartphones or interactive mirrors so shoppers can review products or request assistance. Interactive kiosks also have been added to fitting rooms in select American Eagle stores, allowing customers to request another size from a clerk on the floor, view product recommendations, email information to themselves and calculate what they plan to spend.
But there’s a lot a store can do without those bells and whistles, Ms. Laney says. Good lighting, clean floors, working locks and perhaps a bench or a chair in a fitting room can make a big difference.
No. 14 Boutique in Lawrenceville, for instance, is known for its sleek fitting rooms. Both are bright and roomy, and each has a message spelled out in the white floor in black penny tile. One reads “Flawless, Darling,” and the other reads “Ooh La La.”
“We wanted something that would lift people up,” owner Brianne Conley says. “People love it. It’s definitely a social media moment.”
What customers expect from a fitting room should be in line with the prices they plan to pay in a particular store. Nevertheless, there are things they can do to make trying on clothes more pleasant and empowering, says Susan Albers, a clinical psychologist at Cleveland Clinic and a New York Times’ bestselling author. In 2017, she launched the# Dressing Room Challenge, asking women to give themselves, or even a stranger, a compliment in the fitting room. Her social media post attracted a slew of media attention, including from People magazine.
Beyond eliminating negative language, she suggests not staring at yourself in the mirror while putting on an outfit in the fitting room.
“Turn toward the door, and then turn around with a ‘ ta- da’ toward the mirror. That way as you’re getting dressed you’re not picking apart your body in the mirror.”
Ultimately, no matter where a person shops or the state of the fitting room, it’s about changing the question from “Is my body right for this outfit?” to “Are these clothes right for me?”
“People are listening when you’re in the dressing room,” Dr. Albers says. “You can see people perk up and glow when they get those compliments. When you can make it a fun experience, it can be helpful.”