Trunk Club

Had a great first experience with Elena. She brought out clothes while I drank beer and within a couple hours I had a great start to a new wardrobe. The fitting I had a for a custom sportcoat was more comprehensive than any I’ve ever had. Prices are similiar to nordstrom although you will probably be buying more at one time here.

I booked an appointment early this afternoon at the downtown DC Trunk Club location. After receiving an appointment reminder at 4:00, I proceeded downtown for my 4:30 appointment. When I arrived, I was met with a locked door and no local response from the intercom. Apparently the office was closed and my call was answered by someone in the Chicago office. At this point it was approximately 400 degrees outside and beginning to rain, adding to my displeasure. Between this experience and a previous lackluster trunk, I decided to cancel my membership. I would give 0 stars if I could due to the utterly unprofessional scheduling (especially unforgivable in the age of the Internet, this isn’t 1985 with pieces of paper moving around) — I would lose all credibility in my workplace if I caused the same sort of incident with a client and will hold Trunk Club to the same standard.

I absolutely hate going shopping for clothes. I saw an ad on Facebook for Trunk Club and decided to give it a try. I filled out the online form and was contacted by my stylist, Emily. (Be sure to watch your trash, my first e-​mail was lost in the spam!)
After a bit of e-​mail/​phone tag, we were able to connect via phone. We sorta went over my lifestyle and what kind of clothes I was looking for. She said she had a pretty good idea what I wanted, told me about their mobile app (where you can preview the trunk), and said my first trunk would be at my door in a week er so.
The trunk arrived exactly when she said it would. My first impression after unboxing the 20 or so items was that Emily nailed it. Had everything fit perfectly, I would have kept it all. She sent me two pairs of jeans, two pairs of pants, shoes, button down shirts, henleys, sweaters, and some accessories. There were a few items (socks, undershirts, etc.) that I already owned and had to send back, but otherwise, I kept most of the trunk. I think most guys would expect this to be a «metro-​sexual» look, but Emily really took my casual work attire (jeans and button down) and made it a little more «classy». The best part is that the clothes fit better without having that skin tight look. Say what you want, I get compliments regularly.
Trunk Club will tailor pants for free, so I was also able to meet Emily in person at their shop downtown after work to get my jeans and pants tailored. (She was very accommodating to my schedule which was nice.) The store is right off 9^th street downtown. Emily immediately made me comfortable, offered me a drink (they have wine, beer, water, etc.), and got to tailoring the clothes. I explained that I liked what she picked and wished I could have kept some of the other items she had picked that just didn’t fit. She was able to find other brands in similar colors and I ended up getting those as well. She shipped the tailored pants to my home address and I had them within about a week.
Many people complain about this service because of the price. If you’re going to compare the price of Trunk Club to a higher end department store (e.g. Nordstrom, etc.), you’re going to have sticker shock. Had I bought everything in the trunk, my trunk would have cost easily $ 2k. Most articles in the trunk cost over $ 100 and usually around $ 150. If you want to pick out your own clothes from a department store, then obviously that’s going to be cheaper than a stylist organizing a «look» for you and shipping it to you for free.
Also, if you don’t like difficult to care for clothes, this may be tough. Most of the sweaters she sent me have either hand wash or dry clean instructions on them. A few of the shirts are hang dry and iron. I didn’t ask to have easy care stuff, so I don’t know if that’s even possible. (I’ll definitely be asking on my second trunk, but no biggie if we can’t.) Just a heads up for those who are lazy (like me!).
Last, I should also mention that I think I got lucky with fit. I imagine that when I told Emily about my hobbies and how active I am, she could assume fit, but I’d expect that most of the time that’s not the case. I would also guess that most people go through some «growing pains» with their stylist. I think communication is always going to be the answer. If you don’t communicate with them, they’re basically guessing. (If you can meet them in person the first time, I would expect that’s going to be the best experience.)
I love the whole concept of Trunk Club. Take guys who hate shopping and pair them with people who love to shop. I never have to leave my home to shop. The best part of this is that I told Emily that I like to typically buy clothes in bulk and I’d rather not spend $ 1500 every month. She sends me holiday cards and thank you cards, but otherwise doesn’t spam me. When the seasons change, I’ll definitely be contacting her again.

Shopping for men’s wear at the mall is just not a fun experience. Amanda B., Angela, and all the other enthusiastic and knowledgeable young stylists at Trunk Club make it fun. You won’t end up spending more than you would at the mall either, and the stuff you get is nicer and better tailored to your own style.

I’m not big on going clothing shopping or buying clothes for myself so I thought I would try the Trunk Club. I was paired with a stylist, Amanda. After signing up online I received a call the next day where we discussed some basics and setup an appointment in person since their DC location is right next to my office.
I really wasn’t sure what to expect when I got there, but it is a nice facility. It is difficult to locate since there are no signs. You enter off 9^th street right past the Shake Shack. It is a open floor type office with little areas for trying clothes on. They offer, water, beer and wine while you’re trying on clothes. There are nice couches to lounge on as well if you want to bring a significant other to help. As someone who doesn’t usually shop it was nice having someone pick out clothes and try them on. I am a 6’3″ guy and I often find it hard to get clothes that fit well. They will either be too tall or too short.
Amanda did an excellent job finding clothes that fit me extremely well and were perfect for some of the upcoming events in my life. I found some great shorts and shirts for some upcoming vacations.
Overall the experience was fantastic, until I got the receipt. The price for the experience is built into the full retail cost of the clothing. So if you are a bargain shopper who doesn’t want to spend $ 100-​$ 200 on one casual button up shirt. This is not the place for you. If you are looking for the perfect clothes for a special occaision, a fun hassle free shopping experience, or like spending money on clothes then Trunk Club will be perfect for you.