Six reasons you're putting off booking in your personal shopping trip for men

23 November 2023

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I know what it's like - you intend to do something that makes you feel good about yourself and yet somehow it just never seems to be the right time and you keep putting it off.

Other things take priority over your time and money, and you continue as you are.......which is mainly okay but with an underlying frustration, and inkling that you know you could look better, you're just not sure how.

There's the odd occasion or three, when you dress in something you just don't feel right in and end up in a bad mood, and on a back foot. 

And then there's the panic when you have something you need to dress up for, and you don't have the right thing in your wardrobe. You spend more time than you'd like thinking about it and wonder how all the other guys manage to get it together so easily and you can't.

Sound familiar? Here's some of the other reasons, you might be putting off booking in your personal styling session or personal shopping trip for men:

1. You don't have any special events coming up

Most people presume guys who use a personal stylist for men are going to loads of events where they have to dress up, but in fact this is a misconception.

The majority of the men I shop with are updating their day to day work wardrobe, and casual weekend wardrobe, so they feel great every day. I do sometimes shop with them for events, like weddings or holidays but most of the time it's the everyday things they're going to be wearing on repeat that we buy together.

Mind you - at the time of writing Christmas is coming, which throws up a whole load of conundrums for you.......and outfitting opportunities for me to find you! 

2. You're not sure if it'll be worth the money

You might be surprised to hear that most of my clients, actually say I've saved them money. Not to mention time......and time is money, right?

I do my utmost to make sure you feel like it is worth the money, by getting you to fill in a questionnaire and send me photos beforehand, which helps me understand what you'd like to achieve. I also do loads of prep before we actually meet up for a personal shopping trip, and either make notes on what we can find where, or put things by for you in the shops in your size.

During any of the sessions - Colour & Style, Wardrobe or Shopping, if there’s anything you feel we’re not covering, then please do speak up, so I can make sure you've got exactly what you want from the session and I’ve answered all your questions.

And it doesn't stop at the end of the session! After a Colour & Style session I send you a detailed report, after the Wardrobe Edit, I send the pictures we took and either a shopping list or some ideas on where to get things to fill the gaps and after a Personal Shopping trip, I put together multiple outfits for you, so you know exactly what to wear with what, and have a lovely versatile wardrobe!

If for any reason we don't get everything you need on the shopping trip, I’ll also look online for you afterwards and send you links to fill in any gaps.

So you can see that by shopping with me it saves you tons of time (and frustration) so you don't have to amble around the shops yourself, not knowing what you're looking for and go home empty handed. Or even worse, buy something you probably won't end up wearing just because you felt like you'd spent all that time and had to get something to show for it.

If you come shopping with me, I'll have done all the hard work for you, and edited the selection in Selfridges or one of the other stores you find completely overwhelming, 

Think about it this way - you might have a gym membership that you’re paying £66 a month for but not using - if you haven’t used it for the majority of the year then you will easily  have covered my fee for a shopping trip! 

Or you might have been throwing money at expensive designer clothes thinking they’re going to hit the spot, and upgrade your wardrobe but then you find you just don't wear them. They might not go with the other things you have or you might end up not feeling brave enough to wear them once you’ve got them home, as they're too much of a departure from your normal style.

Most people say they wish they’d done it before and it's saved them money! 

"Appearance is really important in my line of work, so the value I’ll get from working with Sarah will be huge - money very well spent!"

"In many ways I think it actually saved me money because Sarah gave me the confidence to buy items which were not always that expensive but looked very good on me."

"The sessions are enjoyable (amazingly) and it's great value for money."

3. You keep prioritising other things

You might need to do your kitchen, bathroom or any number of other things but is that the real reason you keep putting off getting your wardrobe sorted out?

Perhaps you don't really feel like you deserve it and clothes are just "fluffy nonsense" that women think about. You brush it off and pretend you're not really bothered about how you look, if someone is a bit critical about how you dress.

Having spoken to lots of guys recently about how clothes make them feel, it turns out they have a much deeper effect on you than you might imagine. Many of the guys told me how they’d been “traumatised” by various incidents relating to clothing, and talking to me about what they wear had been "healing" and like a therapy session! 

When you feel rubbish about yourself you might act out in other ways - perhaps by being more aggressive and snappy and impatient towards others. I know I’m a much nicer person when I’m dressed in clothes I feel good in!

So maybe it’s time to prioritise yourself for a change? By getting to grips with your wardrobe, you can finally feel good about what you're wearing and how you look.

"Having dithered for ages about updating my wardrobe I finally got my act together and decided to do something about it. A day spent shopping with Sarah is a great investment. The day was fun, informative and most importantly I walked away with a range of new clothes / outfits I love."

"I could not recommend Sarah more highly. I wish I'd done it sooner!"

"Working with Sarah has been a real boost to my self-confidence. I strongly recommend Sartoria Lab to any guy looking for a new style and unsure of where to begin."

4. You don't think I'll "get you"

I hear you - it's a leap of faith to book in someone that you don't know, and who doesn't know you to assess your wardrobe, and understand where you're at and where you want to go with your style.

When I first started, I used to worry about this too, but pretty quickly I realised that it's actually beneficial not to know you as I don't have any preconceived ideas about you, and what you wear!

Sometimes it's hard to imagine someone you know really well in a different look, but as an "outsider" I can look at it from the point of view of what'll suit your colouring and shape, then figure out how you'd ideally like to look and work on achieving that.

I'd also suggest having a good look around my website and checking out my Instagram posts and LinkedIn profile to see if what I'm talking about there resonates with you. Check out the brands I've featured in my Style Tips to see if you like them, and how I talk about and explain things. 

Feel free to give me a call to have a chat and see if you think I'm a good fit for what you need, and check out other menswear stylists too - you might prefer to work with a guy? 

And if you decide to go with me - then great - I'll be pleased to have you! Sartoria Lab has just had its14th birthday so I can assure you I've had loads of experience in hooking into people's styles!

When you fill in the questionnaire I send you once you've booked, give me as much detail as you like and if you have images or a Pinterest board of things you like, then feel free to send it over.

"The clothes we got are still very much me but just an improved version of myself. I am very happy."

"She strikes a good balance between listening to your clothing preferences and providing her own ideas and as a result I came away with an expanded and more developed understanding of my own personal style."

"She honed in on what I wanted quite quickly, even though I hadn't described it very well and didn't realise that I needed help with dressing casually, while still looking cool & smart."

5. You can make do with what you have

Maybe you can but wouldn’t it be nice to feel good every day in what you're wearing? It's not always a case of buying tons more either - with a few well chosen pieces that go with what you already have it could easily transform your wardrobe.

Are you one of the guys (I know there's loads of you out there) that goes back to the same place time and time again? Even if you're a bit bored by it you just can't be bothered to find out about new brands or shops. Luckily for you, I see new places all the time, so can introduce you to new styles and places to go.

I'm very aware of the sustainability angle too and I've never been one for buying a lot of clothes myself - I'd rather have a few pieces I love and are good quality. But every so often you do need to have a bit of a revamp as things get very tired and worn out - and bizarrely it makes you feel the same when you wear them!

So why make do, when you could expand your horizons a little, feel amazing and look well put together instead of staying in the same old things?

"Her particular genius is in reviewing the clothes you already have and finding a few key new pieces that can revitalize your wardrobe - she has always made suggestions that I find surprising, but in the end she has always been right."

"I didn’t know where to start, but a shopping trip with Sarah (together with all the amazing prep and follow up she did) means for the first time in my life I have a genuinely nice and varied wardrobe full of clothes suitable for any occasion."

"She shows genuine enthusiasm for finding clothes that suit me and and are what I am looking for, working within my budgetary guidelines while also bringing me to places I have not shopped before."

6. You feel silly asking for help & think you should be able to dress yourself

Did you ever have any lessons on how to dress at school? Probably not. Do you chat with your mates about your style and what might suit you? Probably not. Just because we all have to get dressed every day, doesn't necessarily mean we know how to do it well. Similarly you have to eat every day but you're not necessarily a Cordon Bleu cook, and sometimes you let someone else do it for you by going out to a restaurant!

Maybe you’re afraid of being judged by others if you use a personal stylist? Friends and family tend to think they can help in exactly the same way, but I can assure you a personal shopping trip with me is completely different from going with them! (Read how it works shopping with me here)

Plus, I've lost count of the amount of guys who tell me they end up arguing with their partner when they go shopping for clothes....that definitely won't happen with me and most of my clients actually say it was (unexpectedly!) fun.

Perhaps you're afraid of your friends and family thinking “who do you think you are… a celebrity?” But increasingly, real men do have stylists too!

You outsource other things you can’t or don’t like doing - why is shopping for clothes any different?

"The day was fun, informative and most importantly I walked away with a range of new clothes / outfits I love."

"I found shopping with Sarah really fun: she had done very thorough research in advance, and we went to shops and tried on clothes that I simply would never have considered on my own."

"From the Personal Colour & Style Consultation, to the Wardrobe editing and finally the shopping trip, the whole experience was very valuable and enjoyable at the same time."

I know thinking about clothing can seem frivolous but there's one BIG reason why you shouldn't put it off anymore.......it could be a life changing experience!. Just check out the testimonial below.

"You have changed my life. I can’t tell you how many people have commented that my wardrobe, and consequently my outlook on life, has improved, thanks to your guidance. I love my new clothes, and I wear them with confidence".

What we wear is an outer projection of how we want the world to see us, and it's a huge part of our identity. You're quite possibly 1/2 - 3/4 of the way there but if you could just nail that extra bit and still look like you, but better with my help, why wouldn't you?

And if you'd like to have a chat about it - I'd be delighted. Just click here to send me an email, or call me on 07739 469088.