I had a chance to speak with the Head Merchant of Fashion to Figure stores, Frances Freixas, and get a quick peek into what these stores are offering this season.
Q: What are your primary responsibilities at Fashion to Figure?
Frances: I'm involved with everything that has to do with merchandising. I deal with how it gets merchandised in the store, spending one-on-one time with the client. I spend two days a week in the market, and I go into showrooms and place orders. Afterwards, I spend a day keying in orders.
Q: What interesting new styles do you have at Fashion to Figure?
Frances: In terms of gearing up for fourth quarter, we're seeing lots of knitwear, and that's really great. We're seeing a lot of cowl necks and interesting sleeves.
One new addition that people are looking forward to is our shipment of new skinny jeans. We have six new styles coming up-- skinny jeans are selling out and we can't keep them in stock.
Q: I saw mentions to "Stylists" at Fashion to Figure stores. Can you explain that to those of us who haven't been to your shops yet?
Frances: We look for people who are passionate about fashion to work as sales associates. We want our Stylists to be Fashion Ambassadors, and they're encouraged to check on our customers in the shop and give them alternatives and suggest appropriate items.
Q: Can you tell me more about your target plus customer?
Frances: She's a woman who's not happy with other options and may be disappointed with other options. Our core customer is between 25 and 45 years old, although we do get an older customer who wants comfortable items.
Q: Are you planning on making any changes on your website in the near future?
Frances: We are planning on making some changes! We want to make some improvements to our home page, making it more dynamic. Whenever people come into our shops, they're amazed at what they've missed. Nothing online can compare to what we offer in person.
