San Francisco-based startup Trumaker is entering the custom clothing market in the narrowing space between direct sales and e-commerce. The company offers custom button-down shirts through a salesforce of full- and part-time Outfitters, emphasizing made-to-measure fit minus the hassle and guesswork of traditional retail or e-commerce.
Trumaker is keeping its offerings simple, with a selection of 50 styles in the genre of J.Crew or Bonobos—whose Founder and CEO, Andy Dunn, contributed seed funding to former employees Mark Lovas and Adam Sidney to launch Trumaker, where Lovas serves as CEO and Sidney as a VP.
Trumaker’s Outfitters undergo an application and selection process, wherein the company seeks out candidates who are “social and easygoing,” according to Lovas. Outfitters in the field collect customer data and measurements through a mobile app, which enables the company to store the data online for future orders. Following a customer’s initial in-person order, the Outfitter receives an equal commission on any additional online purchases.
Trumaker’s omni-channel strategy leveraging the reach of direct sales reflects an evolution of retail highlighted by Hil Davis in his recent Top Desk feature. Davis, Founder of custom clothier J.Hilburn, explores the impact that traditional retail’s paradigm shift from multi- to omni-channel will have on direct sellers, and how companies in the industry can bring their unique people knowledge to bear in this new customer experience.
Read the full story from Fast Company and view the Trumaker video below.
