Today, Brian sits down with Julie Bornstein, former COO of Stitch Fix, currently launching the personally curated shopping app, The Yes. What is The Yes? How does an AI-integrated shopping app differ from traditional retail or eCommerce experiences?
 

THE YES AND THE NEED FOR TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION

• Julie has been working in the industry since the beginning of eCommerce and has always seen new ideas and opportunities which are now finally possible through technology.
• The Yes is an AI-shopping app which makes a consumer’s shopping experience more efficient, personal, and relevant.
• The Yes features a conglomerate of products from different brands, asking consumers questions to find and personally curate their own personal style and experience in-app.
• Think of Spotify, but for shopping. There’s not one style that’s preferred or featured more than another - it’s an experience in which anyone can find their own specific niche. The Yes does this by focusing on user experience while supporting brands and their relationships to their consumers.

OFF-BRAND, NAME-BRAND, AND A PERSONALIZED EXPERIENCE

• There is a lack of trust in off-brand clothing because of its variance in size, style, fit, etc.
• The Yes is focusing on name-brand products and helping brands to establish trust and alignment between brands and consumers - an example of this is in The Yes mixing DTC brands and traditional brands all within the app.
• Every product has its own very intricate taxonomy that relates it to other products.
• Launching during COVID-19 helped the Yes to sit with their initial product and spend time adding features that originally were not going to be included in the initial version.
• “Adversity spurs innovation and adoption of that innovation.” During COVID, the physical retail experience has become non-existent so eCommerce has had to shift to becoming a more immersive experience. The Yes fits that needed role as a fashion curation by blending AI and human facilitation.

 

BRANDS MENTIONED:

The Yes

Stitch Fix

Good+Foundation

Mythology
 

Amazon

Spotify

‍