Budget Fashionista

• Our Budget Fashionista is trend-led, following fashion rather than leading, and enjoying the admiration of others when it comes to how they dress whilst priding themselves on keeping up to date with fashion at a cost they can afford.

• Spend-savvy rather than financially restricted, they share their budgeting tips and tricks with others and pride themselves on getting a great look for a good deal.

• Savvy across the realm, they know which retailers provide free shipping, when a brand goes on sale and will always shop around for an outfit and the best price before buying - playing brands off each other if need be.

• It’s often hard to earn loyalty from the Budget Fashionista as they shop around so much for a bargain.

• Updating their closets with key, fashion-led pieces is a huge pastime for the Budget Fashionista; they enjoy the process, researching and ritual of it all.

Our Budget Fashionista is trend-led, following fashion rather than leading, and enjoying the admiration of others when it comes to how they dress whilst priding themselves on keeping up to date with fashion at a cost they can afford.

Spend-savvy rather than financially restricted, they share their budgeting tips and tricks with others when it comes to keeping up with the fast pace of fashion and pride themselves on getting a good deal for a great look.

Savvy across the realm, they know which retailers provide free shipping when a brand goes on sale and will always shop around for an outfit and the best price before buying - playing brands off each other if need be. Indeed, it’s often hard to earn loyalty from the Budget Fashionista since they tend to buy based on price rather than brand story, however, if they can depend on a brand for the right price in the right place, loyalty can be built.

Updating their closets with key, fashion-led pieces is a huge pastime for the Budget Fashionista; they enjoy the process, researching and ritual of it all. For them, fashion is on their turf and their terms - and always at a price they’re prepared to pay.

• While the Budget Fashionista may set the trend tone for their friendship group overall, they require confidence from online and others before trying out a new look or trend that might at first seem too ‘new’ or ‘out there’ for them.

• Online, their influence tends to come from high-profile celebrities; Chiara Ferragni, Luisa Pinheiro, Diana Rikasari, Irene Kim and Jackie Aina, as well as other online influencers and fashion sites.

• Social media plays an important, inspirational role but they are also drawn by store windows, magazines, word-of-mouth and in-store.

• While they enjoy putting looks together, they still need to gather the inspiration first, often curating and collecting looks online whether that’s saving on Instagram, sourcing through Pinterest or finding on Facebook.

While the Budget Fashionista may set the trend tone for their friendship group overall, they require confidence from online and others before trying out a new look or trend that might at first seem too ‘new’ or ‘out there’ for them. Fashion for the Budget Fashionista, is, therefore, ‘safe’ in terms of being validated for them, but always fun.

Online, their influence tends to come from high-profile celebrities; at the time of writing this still means influencers such as Chiara Ferragni, Luisa Pinheiro, Diana Rikasari, Irene Kim and Jackie Aina, as well as other online influencers and fashion sites. Social media plays an important, inspirational role but they are also drawn by store windows, magazines, word-of-mouth and in-store.

While they enjoy putting looks together, they still need to gather the inspiration first, often curating and collecting looks online whether that’s saving on Instagram, sourcing through Pinterest or finding on Facebook. Keeping up to date, for this segment, takes time, energy, and a lot of organization.

• The Budget Fashionistas cite fashion, beauty, health and fitness as their interests, along with socializing [helping them be seen], cooking, arts, crafts, home, garden, traveling and time with family and friends.

• Shopping, naturally, is part of their interests too. They enjoy updating their homes in the same way they update their closets; picking up quick, value items that can switch the look of a room up with ease, whether it’s a mirror, a rug or a new, cute cushion for the couch.

• They have a pride of purchase in everything they purchase, whether they’re buying gym clothes, a wedding outfit or just the family grocery shop.

• Always keen to pick up a bargain, it’s no surprise that the Budget Fashionista gives SHEIN a special mention when it comes to their preferred [online] place to shop. In fact, for the highly-discounted China-based brand, the US is their largest market.

• While they may mention Gucci, Balenciaga and brands within the high-fashion realm as ones they are inspired by, they’ll pick up big brand names at places like Nordstrom Rack while astutely also shopping in places like Target and even Walmart. Naturally, places like ASOS, Zara and H&M, Old Navy and JCrew.

• Interestingly, places like Etsy and eBay also count still, they can find cheap items that feel more personalized for them. Buying vintage is also of interest when it comes to spending cleverly. However, they will only have started buying vintage and thrift with confidence recently since it has become fashionable.

Always keen to pick up a bargain, it’s no surprise that the Budget Fashionista gives SHEIN a special mention when it comes to their preferred [online] place to shop. In fact, for the highly-discounted China based brand, the US is their largest market. [Side note: Shein has a faster cycle turnaround than Zara, delivering to over 220 countries, with an estimated revenue of $10billion USD a year…]

While they may mention Gucci, Balenciaga and brands within the high-fashion realm as ones they are inspired by, it doesn’t mean they’re buying from them. Instead, they’ll pick up big brand names at places like Nordstrom Rack while astutely also shopping in places like Target and even Walmart. Naturally, places like ASOS, Zara and H&M also make the list. While Banana Republic or Gap don’t tend to make it, Old Navy does, along with J. Crew.

Interestingly, places like Etsy and eBay also count still, they can find cheap items that feel more personalized for them. Buying vintage is also of interest when it comes to spending cleverly and buying those items that feel ‘individual’. However, they will only have started buying vintage and thrift with confidence recently since it has become fashionable. Before that, it would have been of little interest to the segment as a whole.

• As a brand, they like us, but they don’t love us. However, there are many brands that could say this too.

• We have been on their radar for a while, but as a brand simply don’t offer them the fashion-led pieces they’re looking for to update their closets and looks.

• They want more prints and more colors from us, since this is the easiest way they can tack trends on, buying into the latest graphic or color of the season. Our neutrals don’t offer this and we are seen as more style/staple-led than fashion-focused.

• If they only buy staple products from us we’re giving them little reason to return.

• They come across us when shopping in and around outlet stores and malls, so they tend to have a Factory experience with us as a consumer.

• When it comes to design, the Budget Fashionista desires comfort from their clothing, albeit without relinquishing fashion. They like to look attractive to others and tend to dress in a feminine and/or masculine manner. They want others to see them as having ‘good taste’.

• If they hear, ‘You’re so fashionable’ from others it’s the greatest of compliments for this consumer.

• They are put-together, having invested time researching and validating their look and want that attention and time to be reflected. Giving them items that they can confidently add to their closets is a must, being timely and on-trend is what they want from us.

• They’re social and love dining out and going to bars, so designing for them to be ‘scene and heard’ or rather, ‘scene and admired’ will work.

• They need to feel themselves and they have a comfort zone - literally - that we cannot step outside of.

As a brand, they like us but they don’t love us. We have been on their radar for a while, typically from before they found their stride within fashion, and are still there now but as a brand simply don’t offer them the fashion-led pieces they’re looking for to update their closets and looks.

They want more prints and more colors from us, since this is the easiest way they can tack trends on, buying in to the latest graphic or color of the season. Our neutrals, naturally, don’t offer this right now and we are seen as more style/staple-led than fashion-focused.

Indeed, they tend to have those staple products from us; items they see as timeless basics that they may have invested in as a key base for their closets overall. However, once those pieces are purchased from us, we’re giving them little reason to return. Offering them a fashion-led refresh to their closets can create that return.

Lastly, they come across us when shopping in and around outlet stores and malls, so they tend to have a Factory experience with us as a consumer. Ensuring that experience makes them feel special and fashionable, matters.

When it comes to design, the Budget Fashionista desires comfort from their clothing, albeit without relinquishing fashion. As a consumer, they like to look attractive to others and tend to dress in a feminine and/or masculine manner. They want others to see them as having ‘good taste’. They are classic with a fashion addition, sexy with a feminine/masculine edge, sometimes sporty and always on-trend.

If they hear, ‘You’re so fashionable’ from others it’s the greatest compliment [as opposed to the reaction you’d get from a Streetwear Sophisticate, for instance!].

They are put-together, having invested time researching and validating their look and want that attention and time to be reflected. Giving them items that they can confidently add to their closets is a must, being timely and on-trend is what they want from us. Designing to help them refresh their classic closets, for instance, works.

They’re social and love dining out and going to bars, so designing for them to be ‘scene and heard’ or rather, ‘scene and admired’ will work. They are out and about and want to be noticed. However, they are not style-led, nor necessarily individual in what they wear, so ensuring they’re ‘seen in the scene’ for the right reasons, matters, they want to stand out among the mainstream, but do not have the same personalized confidence we see in the style segments for the brand.

They need to feel themselves and they have a comfort zone - literally - that we cannot step outside of.

Dear Banana Republic,

When I first bought your clothing, I was in college and looking for some respectable adult clothes at a reasonable price. I found them. In the following years, some clothes got lost, others donated, but two staple items remain: one black moto jacket and one wool coat. What stands out about those pieces is that they are simple, classic, and durable. I haven’t been to one of your stores in years but because of those two pieces, I have a positive association with the brand. You should continue to make pieces like that.

I’ve stopped shopping with you because I think of the brand as being boring. I don’t exactly know why that is. Maybe it’s that when I needed things to wear to work, I found them more easily at J. Crew. Maybe it’s that I don’t remember if I can buy a suit from you. In any case, I am a customer you should have been able to keep from a young age and, for whatever reason, you lost me. I’m not sure I’m in your target demographic, but I think your brand could be more associated with classic style than dad clothes.

Keep making great jackets!

Cheers,

Ben, 27, Los Angeles, CA, Budget Fashionista

If you want to read more Open Letters from our respondents, clickhere.