4 Steps to Follow When Buying Clothing As a Gift This Season

There are few things more stress-inducing than deciding on what gifts to purchase for friends and family during the holidays. Many shoppers have opted out of gifting clothing entirely due to perceived difficulty and fears that the gift will be unwanted and unused.  While we agree that purchasing clothing as a gift has been notoriously tough in the past, there are several proven methods that shoppers can use to increase their chances of delivering a memorable gift this season!

Identify Your Giftee's Favorite Stores

Depending on your relationship with your giftee, you may already know what stores they frequent when buying clothing. If not, no problem! There are several different methods you can use to identify their favorite stores. For example, if your giftee is a fan of a certain brand, they may follow them on social media, so pay attention to their liked pages. You can also ask some of their friends, but when in doubt, basics are always tried and true staples of any wardrobe. Buying from your giftee’s favorite store vastly increases the chances of them loving your gift and wearing the item in the future, but don't be too afraid to introduce them to a new brand either!

Make Sure You Get Sizing Right

Relying on traditional sizing methods (like size charts or model dimensions) when buying clothing as a gift can be difficult to impossible as these methods require direct input from the giftee. Not to mention that simply guessing your giftee’s size is also likely to result in an inevitable return, so how do you determine their best-fitting size?

Modern sizing solutions (like WAIR) are the most effective method for gift buyers looking to determine the best-fitting size for their giftees. These solutions seamlessly integrate into the eCommerce sites of apparel brands and require only basic body information from shoppers to recommend their best-fitting size, every time. When on a product page, keep an eye out for a "Find my Fit" button and click it to begin your unique sizing journey.

Modern sizing solutions effectively eliminate the issue of sizing for gift buyers and empower them to shop with confidence, knowing that any clothing they buy will fit their giftee perfectly. ‍

Know Your Giftee's Style

While it’s always tempting to go with what’s trendy at the moment, everyone has their unique tastes when it comes to apparel, and it pays dividends to understand your giftee’s style prior to purchase. A useful (nonintrusive) way of determining their style is to check their social media pages. Typically, you can get a good idea of a person’s style by looking at a few of their recently posted pictures. If the giftee is relatively inactive on social media, try searching for pictures that they are tagged in but make sure that these pictures are recent, as one’s style preference can change in the course of a few months or less! 

You can also dive into what some of their hobbies may be, do they love going to the gym, do they work from home, do they enjoy outdoor activities? A solid understanding of the activities they enjoy can help you uncover their stylistic preferences.

Make Potential Returns As Easy As Possible

Even the most well-thought-out gifts have the possibility of being returned. Therefore it pays to familiarize yourself with the return policy of the store you buy from. No gift buyer wants the giftee to undergo a potentially stressful and time-sensitive return process. If it happens to be the case that the store you're looking to purchase from has a return policy that is less than stellar, remember that it's okay to shop around. Make note of brands with easy return apps (like Smile and Returnly), as well as brands that offer in-store exchanges for eCommerce purchases.

Finally, keep your eyes out for key terms like "final sale" or "last chance," especially when it comes to promotional pricing pieces. Even in a worst-case scenario, most brands will at least offer store credit.

A Tough But Rewarding Experience

While buying clothing as a gift may seem like a daunting process, it can become relatively straightforward once you know which steps to take. It can also be an exceptionally rewarding experience for both the gift buyer and the giftee alike as nothing beats the feeling you get when that special someone opens their gift and is ecstatic with your selection.

Thanks to modern innovations within the fashion and apparel industries, gift shopping for others has never been easier, so why not take advantage of this opportunity to wow your giftees this season?

Interested in learning more about WAIR? Schedule a demo here and be sure to follow us on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook for all your fashion content needs!