Shopping online can get kind of complicated, especially if you are shopping for articles of clothing from a brand that you have never tried or purchased from before. How do you know what will fit and look the best on you?
As much as we would all love to think that every single clothing brand out there follows the same general rule of thumb when it comes to sizing, the truth of the matter is… they do not. You could be a medium in one brand and an extra large in another. One brand might use even numbers for sizes, while another uses odd numbers. Oh, and then there is the European sizing! 38, 42, etc… How do these numbers compare to United States sizing?!
Apart from the sizing, there is the simple fact that people have all different body shapes and types. Even if you wear the same size as one of your friends, you probably do not have the exact same body type. No one does! We are all built differently, and therefore clothing will fit and look very differently on each and every one of us.
The sizing system for apparel is just generally flawed. It’s not practical to simply rely on your sizing from one brand or style for another. That is one of the biggest advantages of shopping in person in a store. You can try on everything, look in the mirror, walk around, and really truly see how the clothing works for your body type.
Shopping in person also has its downside. It can be time consuming, and sometimes you get sucked into buying things that you didn’t go out for or don’t even really need. Malls can be busy and overcrowded, parking can be hard to find, and then there are times when you can’t find what you are looking for. Shopping online bypasses the driving to and from, the looking for parking, and the frustration that comes with being in a big crowd. Plus, with so many eCommerce websites available now, it’s more than likely that you will be able to find anything and everything you need on the World Wide Web.
Still, shopping through eCommerce sites comes with road blocks. There are so many questions to ask when you choose to do your shopping online. Until you really get to know the ins and outs of a particular brand and it becomes your go-to, you will continue to ask those questions every single time you open a new store’s website on your browser.
While finding the perfect fit is very important for your everyday essentials, work clothes, and formal attire, it’s even more important when you are dealing with clothing that is meant to keep you safe and protected. At NBT Clothing, our main mission is to help every rider stay prepared and look good doing it, but how can you be prepared if the motorcycle apparel you are wearing does not fit you the way that it should?
If your motorcycle jacket, shirt or pants are not the right size, they can’t and won’t do their job properly. Let’s say, for instance, you purchase our best-selling Free Ridin’ Flannel or License to Ride Pant, but you bought the wrong size and the pieces fit a little too baggy on you. If you were to get in an accident while out on the road and fall off your bike, there are a couple of things that could happen. Since the shirt is loose, it could potentially get caught on the handles, pedals, wheels, or any other part of the bike, and make your fall even worse… OR since the clothing item is bigger than it should be, it isn’t fitted enough to keep debri or other environmental elements from entering through the sleeves, or the top and bottom of the shirt or pants, which could lead to abrasive cuts and scratches, or worse, broken bones. When the shirt or pants fit too loosely, they also might not keep out heat or cold weather as well as they should.
Alternatively, if the shirt or pants fit too snug, you could succumb to poor circulation and just feel really uncomfortable during your entire ride. The point of NBT Clothing is to provide safety and protection, in a stylish and comfortable way. But for all of these things to happen as best as they can, you have to get the fit right!
This is why we were excited to learn about WAIR, an online tool that uses artificial intelligence technology to help shoppers find the best fit, product and/or size without ever having to step foot inside a store’s dressing room. It works by using an algorithm that matches the customer’s body measurements and preferences to a specific product to give them the ultimate personalized, accurate shopping experience.
In just a few clicks, you will know exactly what size is best for your body type, and any of that uneasiness you might feel about shopping without trying on the clothes first, all melts away.
The WAIR brand was founded in 2019, but emerged on the eCommerce retail scene in 2020 as a practical answer to one of the problems faced by a lot of people that year due to the global pandemic: not being able to try on clothes in person. At one point, everything was shut down. Many retail stores might not have been able to reopen, and instead fully turned their brand into an eCommerce business. Of course, there were plenty that did reopen, but for a while, many of these stores were no longer allowing their customers to try on clothing in the fitting rooms.
This resulted in people purchasing things without seeing how the clothes fit and feel, and then taking them home to try on in hopes that they will be happy with the results. Alternatively, and probably the most common outcome, they were becoming increasingly more reliant on ecommerce and online shopping.
As expected, this kind of blind shopping is not always successful, and results in returns more often than not, and it most definitely has an effect on the fashion and retail industry. Take a look at these statistics noted in WAIR’s press release from November of 2020: 90 percent of shoppers do not fit apparel as designed. As a result, half of online shoppers expect to return merchandise because of fit. These trends have led to 40 percent of apparel being discounted or destroyed. Overall, incorrect sizing and overproduction have led to over $300 billion in lost profits for fashion and retail brands each year.
This is what makes WAIR such an incredible company to come out of the woodwork at just the right moment in time. Regardless of what is going on in the world, there are always going to be shoppers, and the most important thing for a brand to do to ensure the best customer experience is make the shopping process as easy as possible.
The idea behind this groundbreaking technology is that it allows for brands and retailers to give shoppers the ultimate customer service experience from the comfort of their own homes. The AI technology used for the program gives customers confidence in selecting the clothing to purchase. Once they experience how spot on the apparel fits, they become more loyal to the brand, and in turn, that helps to increase the success of the brand.
It’s a win-win for both sides. Customers can shop online efficiently and effectively and not have to stress over the possibility of needing to return everything and start the search for the items all over again. Brands and companies become more trustworthy and consistent. The number of returns they have to process and amount of clothing that can no longer be sold decreases, and sales conversions and customer acquisition increases.
Ecommerce brands and retailers that choose to give their customers the option to use WAIR when shopping online will most likely see big changes to their business. According to WAIR, its technology has resulted in a 23% decrease in size related returns and a 28% increase in conversions for its retail partners, totaling an amount of $100 million in revenue generated.
There is so much detail that goes into creating this kind of useful technology. Let’s take a look at the timeline of events that occurred to bring WAIR to life. Although the company didn’t officially launch until 2019, the research and work started back in 2012 when the founders developed the 3D body scanning technology to use for creating all of the maps of various body dimensions. But that was a simple beginning. Funds from investors were needed to really develop this technology as far as it needed to go to become something of use to the world. In 2014, $2 million was funded, followed by another $4 million in 2017. In 2019, over one million body scans had been generated, and in 2021, two million. Today, there are 3.1 million body predictions.
Some of the retailers that have incorporated the WAIR technology into their eCommerce sites include CUTS Clothing, a men’s and women’s clothing brand whose claim to fame are shirts that double as athleisure and office attire; Rhone, a men’s performance-driven clothing line; Superdry, a men’s and women’s fashion line that combines American, Japanese and British influence; and Kenny Flowers, an upscale resort and luxury lifestyle brand, among many others.
NBT Clothing is honored and excited to be among the list of online retailers that have WAIR as part of its eCommerce site! We like things to be simple and straight to the point, which is why WAIR fits in so nicely on our website. It is very user friendly and hassle free.
All you need to do is select the product you are interested in and click on the button on the right hand side of the size that says “WAIR What’s My Size?” The WAIR button is located right above the “Add to Cart” button, so you can’t miss it! The tool will first prompt you to enter your height, weight and age. Then, click “Continue” and you will be asked a series of questions to help the algorithm determine the shape of your body as needed for that particular piece of clothing.
After you have answered all of the questions, it will show the recommended size for you, as well as an alternative size for the next-best fit. You only need to complete the WAIR questionnaire one time, and your information will be stored and saved for all items on our website. If at any time your body shape, age, height, or weight changes, you can always restart the questionnaire and begin again.
WAIR sizing technology is available for all of the NBT Clothing items, including the the License to Ride Pant in denim, black, olive, khaki and camo; the Free Ridin’ Flannel in green and black, black and charcoal, and red and black; the Fundamental Shop Shirt in navy, and the Defender Vest in black.
Not only does WAIR provide its retail partners with the size and fit recommendation technology, but there are also shopper insights available that can really help a brand get to know its audience and customer base. As time goes on, and more and more customers enter their body dimensions into the database, this information is stored for you so you have an idea of the body types purchasing your products. This allows you to continuously improve upon your product catalog, creating the perfect clothing for the people who love to shop with you.
You can also keep track of shoppers who bought products or returned something, left a bad review, or who visited the site, but didn’t purchase anything. Information like this is key because it gives you an opportunity to reach out to those customers who returned an item, left a bad review, or didn’t buy, and create a relationship to reverse that negative experience and hopefully convert a sale in the future.
Creating a memorable customer service and shopping experience for our NBT Clothing fans is top priority for us. We want you to feel good in our clothing, and also feel good about shopping with us. We do understand that things happen, so if for some reason you are not happy with your purchase, we offer a 15-day satisfaction guarantee. All you have to do is send back the item, and we will give you a full refund, no questions asked.
WAIR allows you to shop for safe, protective and fashionable motorcycle apparel from NBT Clothing with confidence and ease. It streamlines the shopping process for you, so you no longer feel any confusion when trying to figure out your size. When your motorcycle gear fits you exactly as it should, you know it can do its job exactly as it should. This is what we mean when we say that NBT Clothing represents Style and Safety Redefined™.
