How to choose the right products for your store
- hello978855
- May 14, 2025
- 4 min read
Let’s be real—most fashion buyers think they have the best taste. And maybe some do.
But when your racks are collecting dust and your inventory isn’t moving, it might be because you’re shopping for yourself, not your customer.
Your job isn’t to curate your dream wardrobe—it’s to buy what will sell!
And if you don’t understand who your customer actually is, you’re wasting money, time, and retail space. Every consumer fits somewhere on a fashion spectrum, shifting between trends and personal style, and if you’re not meeting them where they are, someone else will.
The Fashion Archetypes: A Spectrum, Not a Box
Forget rigid categories—style isn’t that simple. Fashion consumers exist on a spectrum, and your customer isn’t just one thing. They have phases. They move between influences. They’re not blindly following trends, but they’re not completely indifferent either.
Here’s the breakdown, with the brands they actually buy:
1. The Trendsetters (Innovators)
Who They Are: They don’t just wear fashion, they are fashion. They don’t care if something is “wearable” or “flattering”—it’s about making a statement. SZA and Rihanna embody this archetype. They’ll mix Rick Owens with a thrifted piece from Tokyo, or wear a gown made of recycled rubber tires if the silhouette is right. They’re always ahead, always unpredictable.
Where They Shop:
Luxury: Rick Owens, Pyer Moss, Balenciaga
Mid-Tier: Collina Strada, Corii Burns, Ottolinger
Affordable: Jaded London, Cider, Urban Outfitters
Buying Strategy: If you’re catering to them, you better go all in. No watered-down versions of a trend—give them the extreme cuts, the futuristic tailoring, the fashion that confuses the mainstream. But don’t invest too heavily—they make up only 2.5% of the population.
2. The Style Seekers (Early Adopters)
Who They Are: This is Beyoncé-level style—always put together, always on the frontlines of what’s next, but never looking like they’re trying too hard. They don’t need to be first, but they need to be early. They aren’t reckless with trends; they’re selective, curating their wardrobe like an art collection.
Where They Shop:
Luxury: Jacquemus, Alexander Wang, Dior
Mid-Tier: Farm Rio, Reformation, Mannière De Voir
Affordable: Zara, Aritzia, Mango
Buying Strategy: Style Seekers make up 13.5% of the market—significant enough to cater to, but they expect refinement. If it’s cheap-looking, they won’t buy it. If it’s everywhere, they’re already over it. Sell them something that looks exclusive—even if it isn’t.
3. The Everyday Stylists (Early Majority)
Who They Are: Khloé and Kylie Kardashian fall right here. They’re trendy, but they don’t take risks. They adopt trends once they’ve been Instagram-approved. Their closets are full of pieces that look expensive but aren’t—their goal is to look effortless, even if a lot of effort went into it.
Where They Shop:
Luxury: Sandro, Maje, Veronica Beard
Mid-Tier: Nicole Lynel, Aimé Leon Dore, Anthropologie
Affordable: ASOS, H&M, Madewell
Buying Strategy: This is your money-maker. At 34% of the market, they are the biggest driver of fashion sales. They want trendy, but wearable—they’ll buy that leather trench coat when it’s been styled a hundred different ways on TikTok. If you stock this segment well, you’ll always make a profit.
4. The Late Majority (Classic Comforts)
Who They Are: These are the shoppers who wait until something is everywhere before they even consider it. Think of TikTok shoppers—hesitant, skeptical, but eventually convinced once a trend is normalized. They’re not tastemakers, but they do like to look “put together.”
Where They Shop:
Luxury: Theory, Ralph Lauren, Veronica Beard
Mid-Tier: Banana Republic, Everlane, J.Crew
Affordable: Uniqlo, Gap, Ann Taylor
Buying Strategy: They respond to safe trends—structured blazers, monochrome sets, clean silhouettes. Don’t overwhelm them with high-fashion cuts. They need familiarity with a twist.
5. The Quiet Luxury (Laggards)
Who They Are: These shoppers aren’t buying trends because they don’t care. Think Amal Clooney, the Roy family from Succession—people who spend $5,000 on a coat and no one even notices because it’s that understated. They don’t wear logos, they wear quality.
Where They Shop:
Luxury: The Row, Loro Piana, Brunello Cucinelli, Hermès
Mid-Tier: COS, Vince, Totême
Affordable: Everlane (but only the cashmere), Uniqlo (for basics)
Buying Strategy: If your customer base is here, do not cheapen the aesthetic. They want timeless craftsmanship, not fast-moving inventory. If it’s trendy, they won’t buy it.
Why This Matters
You are exposed to more products than your customer. That leather jacket you saw five times at market week? They haven’t seen it once. You’re burned out on trends before they even reach your audience. Your job isn’t to impress yourself—it’s to predict what your customers will gravitate toward before they know they want it.
Fashion archetypes are fluid. Your customer isn’t stagnant. A Style Seeker in her 20s might transition into a Classic Comfort consumer in her 30s. If you don’t adjust your offerings, you’ll lose them.
Your brand should align with the majority of your inventory. Just because you like a certain aesthetic doesn’t mean it fits your brand. If your audience is made up of Everyday Stylists, but you keep buying for Trendsetters, you’re setting yourself up for failure.
Final Thought: Are You Really Buying for Your Customer?
The best buyers don’t let ego drive their decisions. They don’t treat the showroom floor like their personal closet. They recognise that fashion is business, and the key to longevity is understanding who is actually shopping.
So ask yourself:
Are you buying what your customer needs, or are you just indulging your own taste?
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