Subscription boxes are relatively popular these days. There’s no shortage of them, there are arts and crafts boxes, comic boxes, videogame boxes, and so many others. I mention these few because they’re what most people associate when they think about subscription boxes.
But did you know that there are clothing boxes now? Meet Wantable, Stitch Fix, and Trunk Club– alternatives to regular apparel shopping. But are they any good?
If you’ve been shopping at some online retailers, you might’ve come across them, and they look like a killer deal, especially on first glance. So, we’ll see if they’re any good, and if they are, which one is for you.
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What Are Wantable, Stitch Fix & Trunk Club?
What they are is clothing subscription boxes.
The basic premise of it is the following: You take a style quiz where you answer questions that will determine your style and fit. Once that’s done, a stylist will compile a subscription box based on your taste and preferences.
This is where their differences start to become apparent. Some will offer the option to review your items beforehand, like Trunk Club, and others will be a mystery until you get the box on your doorstep- Wantable.
Some can also be a one-time deal, while others are only subscription services. The differences are very clear, and we’ll go through each one consecutively.
Table Comparison of Wantable, Stitch Fix & Trunk Club
This can serve as a TL;DR to the rest of the research piece. We compare what each subscription service offers based on variables, which we feel like are relatively important to the average consumer.
Here’s a comparison of Wantable, Stitch Fix, and Trunk Club:
| Wantable VS Stitch Fix VS Trunk Club : Fashion Boxes |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Styles OR Fits | Style Active Sleep & Body Men’s Active Edit Women | Women Plus Kids Men Maternity Petite Big & Tall Activewear Casual Business Casual Formal | Everyday Casual Business Casual Women Men Formal Activewear |
| One-Time Purchase & Subscription | Subscription | Both | Both |
| Stylist Fee | $20 | $25 | $25 |
| Which Brands? | A lot of smaller and less well-known brands. Partner brands not disclosed. | Nike, Levi’s, The North Face, Under Armour, Adidas, Vans, vuori, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, and a lot more | Nordstorm |
| Shipping & Returns | Free Shipping & Returns | Free Shipping & Returns | Free Shipping & Returns |
| Can You See The Items Before Opening? | No | Only after the box gets shipped. | Yes |
| Get your subscription: |
Wantable Review
Wantable is probably the least known subscription service out of the three. It has an unique concept to it though.
Basically, you go through the usual style quiz which a lot of similar subscription services have, and based on that, you get a package of apparel that is somewhat in your style preference. You can pick from three edits such as: style, active, sleep & body, men’s active edit, and a limited time themed edit.
Once you go through the quiz, there’s something called the “Stream”. From here, you can decline or request certain items of clothing that you want to be included or not included in your box.
The requested items aren’t guaranteed to be sent to you, but it does usually happen.
Now, once you get your box, you can decline and accepts certain items. For example, if you accept five out of seven items, you will get a discount of 20% on every article of clothing. If you don’t accept any of the items, you will have to pay a $20 styling fee.
There are a variety of plans at different price points, and the cost of each item put together usually exceeds the value of the subscription box, which is nice. On average, some customers report liking half or more of the items included in the box. Not perfect, but definitely impressive.
Let’s go over what the pros and cons of Wantable are:
PROS
- Unique way of compiling subscription boxes
- You can request or decline items
- Great value
CONS
- Not that many well-known brand partners
- No preview of items beforehand
Stitch Fix Review
Stitch Fix is probably the industry-leader for apparel subscription boxes. It is quite well known for a subscription service, and their homepage is littered with so many well-known brand partners.
It is similar to Wantable in many ways, or Wantable is similar to Stitch Fix, however you want to look at it. I prefer the latter, because Stitch Fix does appear to have a cleaner track record and a bigger one for that matter.
Anyways, instead of seven items, you will get only five, and the styling fee is valued at $25. If you keep all of the articles of clothing, you do get a 25% discount on the whole order.
There are a lot more styles and fits to choose from with Stitch Fix: women, plus, kids, men, maternity, petite, big and tall, and so many other styles like activewear, casual, formal, and so on.
Stitch Fix’s portfolio is much bigger than a lot of the other similar subscription services, including Trunk Club and Wantable. There are a couple of price ranges to choose from, the most popular being the $50-$100 one.
They work with a lot of brands, some of them which are in the main spotlight: Nike, Levi’s, The North Face, Under Armour, Adidas, Vans, vuori, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, and a lot more.
Shipping is always free, and there are free returns and exchanges. Stitch Fix is among the select few that allow you to do a one-time deal, and not opt-in for the subscription.
I would say, some of the practices that Stitch Fix adopts are very modern and consciously consumer-focused.
To put it in perspective, we didn’t find any major flaws, as you can see from the pros and cons:
PROS
- Hugest variety of fits to choose from
- Biggest variety of styles to choose from
- Working with many industry leaders in clothing
- Free shipping, returns and exchanges
- No subscription required
- Very consumer-focused
CONS
- It would have been nice to have a 25% discount if you had only accepted 3 or 4 of the items included with the box
IMPORTANT: You do get a preview of the articles of clothing only after the order gets to the shipping phase with Stitch Fix.
Trunk Club Review
Trunk Club is probably one of the hottest services at the moment. It does appear that the deal to be had with Trunk Club appeals to a lot of people, since it has been exponentially growing in the last couple of months.
We do notice that Trunk Club comes often on potential customer’s radars.
Anyhow, Trunk Club manages to rack in a lot of customers just by being unique. To put it in perspective, Trunk Club usually sends more items, ten (10) to be exact with a couple of shoes, but there is no discount if you keep most of them or all of them.
The stylist fee is $25 and it goes toward the purchase. There’s also a style quiz with Trunk Club, but the most unique and interesting aspect with the Trunk Club experience is the personal touch.
In what they call ‘round one’ you get a suggestion of items that should be included in the box, and a PERSONAL NOTE from the stylist, which I found very interesting and new.
Here you can decline any items beforehand, and the stylist will suggest new ones. Very unique and perfectly executed from Trunk Club.
It was surprising to see that Trunk Club had a plan for different budgets, and the same as Wantable and Stitch Fix, the least expensive option is the $50-$100 option, which I found surprising, considering the fact that you get more items, and a preview of your items beforehand.
This is the most unique experience to be had from all three, and it’s thanks to this uniqueness that Trunk Club is getting the recognition that it deserves nowadays.
Like with the others, we also compiled Trunk Club’s pros and cons:
PROS
- Unique experience, very personal
- You get a preview of your items beforehand along with a note (items can be accepted or declined)
- Most amount of items included on average
- High-quality apparel
- Works with Nordstorm
CONS
- Some pieces that get included in the box are questionable, even if you go through the style quiz
Head-To-Head Comparisons
Now that we reviewed all three consecutively, I think it’s time to put them in a head-to-head battle. It’s not like we’ll spill some beans here, but we’ll compare them in a way which the primary reasons on why you should go with a certain subscription service get revealed.
Meaning, we’ll just make speculations on which service fits your particular case or needs the best.
Wantable VS Stitch Fix – What Subscription Box Is For You?
If I was being honest, which I tend to be, I prefer Stitch Fix’s service over Wantable. This is due to a couple of reasons:
One, it is well-known that Stitch Fix works with some of the best clothing manufacturers on the planet. Wantable has some unique apparel, but they usually work with lesser known brands, which is fine and all, but if the price ranges are the same between both companies, in my case I would go with Stitch Fix mainly because of that reason.
Second reason is fit and style options, which Stitch Fix has more of. Wantable will have enough options for a lot of people, but the catalogue at Stitch Fix is quite impressive, and they might be the only ones that have your particular style or fit.
We do have to give one thing to Wantable though, they have some great stylists. Usually, there are more complete fits and very unique outfits in one box when compared to Stitch Fix.
Still, I think those two reasons seal the deal for me. In my opinion, Stitch Fix is better overall, and it does appear to be the more complete experience at the moment.
Wantable OR Trunk Club?
I think it’s the same case with this head-to-head honestly. The thing that kills it for me with Wantable is the fact that there isn’t anything unique in terms of what you get. And I do believe it is a lot like a hit-or-miss experience, whereas Trunk Club does a better job of nailing the items you want.
This is thanks to Trunk Club’s unique thingy where it shows you the items chosen for your box, then gives you the option to decline them.
Again, I will give Wantable a few points for making the best “complete” outfits. What I’m referring to are outfits that usually go together from the style edit. As far as is it the same case with the other edits, I’m not aware.
But you can still mix and match and create your own outfits anyways, this is just a minor plus in my opinion. Plus, Trunk Club does work with Nordstorm, which is usually a more luxury-oriented apparel brand.
So, in my opinion only, the Trunk Club experience is more personal, you get to pick which items come in your package, and it’s a much better value overall. Plus, no subscription is needed, and shipping is free, along with returns.
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The Best One Of All Three – Stitch Fix VS Trunk Club
This is the head-to-head which should reveal the best one overall, because I think it is pretty much neck-and-neck between these two.
Keeping it as brief as possible, in my opinion, Stitch Fix is marginally better. The reason I think so, it’s because of the more variety of brands that the company works with, the more options with styles, and most importantly, fits.
We did mention that a lot of the brands that Stitch Fix works with are very well-known in the industry, but that is not the determining factor here, I think. It’s the styles and fit options, which are quite extensive.
Trunk Club might be missing some fits and edits, which for most people, will be a deal-breaker no doubt.
But even though Stitch Fix might have more options and a bigger catalogue, Trunk Club is also very impressive, and the experience is much better. You have better chances of getting the clothes that you actually want. So, even if you choose to go with Trunk Club, you’ll still have a great experience and a get a good deal actually.
Final Verdict: Clothing Boxes
It’s very interesting what all three companies are doing to be honest. Especially, Stitch Fix and Trunk Club. They’ve managed to create an interesting model for online apparel shopping.
Wantable comes up short when compared to Stitch Fix and Trunk Club in my opinion. They still have a unique “look”, but that’s not enough to do it for me, and I suspect, most. But if you’re into it, I do admit it’s unique.
The other two are pretty much neck-and-neck, with Stitch Fix having a lot more styles and fits to choose from, which I think will do it for most people. This is the best one overall, in my heart.
But the award for the most unique experience and most consumer-focused experience goes to Trunk Club. They’ve managed to still have a surprise factor which we all love with subscription boxes, and also have a personal touch in the deciding stage.
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