When I shop for clothing, I like to walk through the aisles, interact with the salespeople, touch the fabrics, and try on different items to find the best fit.
But as an entrepreneur and a father of three kids, I don’t always have the time to go shopping. As a consequence, I’ve started to do most of my shopping online.
Although the experience doesn’t compare to shopping in a store, I’ve managed to find a few online menswear retailers that are convenient and offer the styles and brands that I like.
One of my current favorites is Nordstrom Trunk Club, an online men’s clothing subscription service.
Trunk Club began as an independent company in 2009 but was acquired by Nordstrom in 2014.
This acquisition allowed the company to offer customers a vast supply of premium clothing brands coupled with Nordstrom’s top-notch customer service.
For this Trunk Club review, I received three trunks, one each month. Overall the process was simple, and I received several nice additions to my wardrobe.
Getting Started with Trunk Club
Getting started with Trunk Club is simple.
First, you start by setting up an account and taking a style quiz.
This quiz will give your Trunk Club stylist a general idea about your likes and dislikes, body dimensions, favorite brands, and how much you typically spend on clothing.
I’ve created a page with a few of the questions you will answer about your personal style. Click the link to see the Trunk Club Style Quiz.
In addition to the Style Quiz, you can also hone your preferences by completing Style Swipes. Think of it as the Tinder of fashion.
You can either swipe left or right or click thumbs up or thumbs down to indicate which pieces you like or dislike.
After you complete your style survey, you will be connected with a personal stylist who will find the best clothes for your size, style, and budget.
Trunk Club Personal Stylist
Your personal stylist will help you build your wardrobe online. You pay a $25 styling fee for the service, but it’s waived if you purchase anything from your trunk.
I was assigned Brittany as my personal stylist.
We exchanged several messages over the course of a week to make sure we were aligned on my personal tastes.
I told her that I’d like a nice outfit for a date night with my wife.
To spice things up a bit, I gave her the latitude to surprise me with items that I may not have considered.
Brittany took the information from my style quiz, style swipes, and messages and selected the following pieces for me:
Welcome to your trunk preview. Inside you’ll find stylish yet practical pieces that’ll refresh your wardrobe for the season. Take a look through and let us know your thoughts!
You have 48 hours to make edits, leave feedback & confirm this trunk. Let us know if there’s anything else you’d like to see and don’t forget to check out the outfit recs as well!
Best,
Brittany
Keep in mind that you can choose which items you want to be delivered.
You have 48 hours to review, edit, and confirm your Trunk Preview before the Trunk ships out to you.
If you want an item, just click “Send.” If not, choose “Don’t Send” and give a reason why (e.g. you already own something similar, too expensive, etc).
You can also leave an additional message if you’d like your Trunk Club stylist to add additional items.
If you don’t like any of the items, you can cancel the entire trunk and ask your stylist to start over.
Delivery and Cost of Trunk Club Items
The clothing arrived a few days after I made my selections (I chose to receive everything for the sake of this Trunk Club review).
The pieces were individually packaged in an elegant Trunk Club box and delivered right to my front door.
Included in the trunk is an itemized breakdown of each piece with the associate price. The items in the first trunk totaled more than $3,000.
- Rag & Bone T-Shirt ($70)
- Ferragamo Brown Loafers ($595)
- Bespoken Navy Derby Oxfords ($475)
- Sand Blazer ($695)
- Levi’s Denim Jacket ($88)
- Billy Reid Blazer ($625)
- John Varvatos V-Neck Sweater ($188)
- Ralph Lauren Cable-Knit Sweater ($195)
- Theory Henley Shirt ($115)
- Life After Denim Sweatshirt ($98)
- J Brand Jeans ($183)
- Paige Denim Khaki Pants ($179)
- Rag & Bone Black Denim Jeans ($210)
- Number of Items: 13
The nice thing about Trunk Club is that you can select items at various price points.
If something is too expensive, you can let your stylist know and he or she will find something else that fits your price range.
Trunk Club also has periodic sales and markdowns.
Trunk Club gives you 10 days to try on the clothing and make your selections. If you need more time, you can contact your stylist for an extension.
You only pay for the clothes you keep, shipping is free both ways, and you can request a new trunk anytime you’d like.
Trunk club gives you the option of ordering trunks every month, every two months, every three months, or on-demand.
Trunk Club Date Night Box
From this trunk, I decided to create a casual date night outfit.
Although I enjoy dressing up, my wife is more laid-back. She likes to wear jeans, simple tops, and jackets.
To complement my wife’s style, I chose the following items for my casual date night look: John Varvatos V-Neck Sweater, Rag & Bone Black Denim Jeans, Levi’s Denim Jacket, and Ferragamo Brown Loafers.
Casual Office Trunk
After I returned items from the date night trunk, I requested a trunk with items I can wear to work at my casual office.
I also told the stylist to add a few edgy items to the trunk and told her to use Lenny Kravitz as a style inspiration.
She took all of my input and prepared a trunk with items I could wear to work: khakis, sweaters, jackets, and shoes.
Plus she added a cool AllSaints Milo Leather Biker Jacket ($498), Modern American Skinny Jeans ($124), and Supply Lab Damian Low-Top sneakers ($100) for my edgy look.
Although I loved the edgy look, I decided to only keep a couple of the casual work items, Topman Solid Cotton Turtleneck Sweater ($35) and Topman Highlight Plaid Stretch Skinny Trousers ($65).
Black-Owned Brands Trunk
For my third and final trunk, I had planned on requesting dressier items such as suits, blazers, and accessories.
However, I changed my mind after receiving an e-mail message from Trunk Club about their Black-Owned Brands trunk.
I logged onto the site and immediately requested the trunk. Shortly afterward, I received this message from the stylist.
I am excited for you to check out this Trunk! All of the pieces in this trunk are from Black-owned and founded brands. As a company, we are working diligently to expand our product offering. Please bear with us as we are learning and growing.
This trunk included a variety of streetwear from brands such as Goodman Brand (owned by Ciara and Russell Wilson), Coral Studios, DIOP, CARROTS BY ANWAR CARROTS, and Icecream by Billionaire Boys Club.
While I was initially excited about the whole trunk, I only kept the Renowned LA Men’s KEEP OFF Workwear Zip Jacket ($185) and the Good Man Brand Legend leather sneakers, which were handmade in Italy ($129).
Final Thoughts About Trunk Club
With Trunk Club, you’ll discover great clothes that are perfect for you without ever having to go shopping in brick-and-mortar stores.
They combine top brands, expert service, and unparalleled convenience to deliver a highly personalized experience that helps you look your best.
You can also get alterations (some are free, others have a fee) by taking your clothes and receipt to a Nordstrom store.
If you’re new to Trunk Club, I recommend getting The Starter Trunk with the top 10 foundational pieces every wardrobe needs.
The trunk will include a denim jacket, tailored blazer, button-down shirt, short sleeve shirt, t-shirt, hoodie, jeans, shorts, sneakers, and baseball cap.
Not only will you save time, but you will also begin to hone your personal style.
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Frederick J. Goodall is the Editor-in-Chief of Mocha Man Style, media spokesperson, event host, photographer, and a top social media influencer in Houston, TX. He likes to write about fashion, cars, travel, and health.