Niche online delivery services aren’t new: From grocery delivery to Netflix’s red envelopes, we can get almost anything delivered to our doors. And it seems like a new shopping site pops up every day. But finding clothes that actually fit? That can be a challenge in the analog world, let alone online.
 
“I’ve five foot two and a 32 inch inseam is always going to have to go to the tailor for me,” says Katrina Lake, founder and CEO of online fashion startup Stitch Fix.

Stitch Fix aims to solve that sizing problem – and other common shopping hassles – by using personal stylists. The company decides what items to send you based on a combination of customer feedback, data, and actual, human stylists. And the system gets smarter as it gets more data on each customer.
 
“We’re taking the best of both worlds to be able to provide a service that certainly has science and math behind it…but also just to be able to take advantage of everything that a stylist can do – in combination with the algorithm,” explains Lake.
 
Lake doesn't see old-fashioned stores totally disappearing any time soon, but online retailers like Stitch Fix might just help fill a void we didn't even know we had.
 
“In the old days of department stores, it used to be this amazing place of a lot of discovery – you see all the new things and you have salespeople who knew you…and more and more I think we’re missing a little bit of that really delightful experience in the brick and mortar world.”