Woe for stores as shoppers look elsewhere for inspiration
NEW YORK — Erica Dao used to shop at malls once a month, looking in stores and seeing what the mannequins displayed. Now, she mainly looks for inspiration on social media.
“I discover brands through Instagram,” said Dao, 33, of St. Paul, Minnesota.
Elizabeth Troy says she was the “queen of sales,” going through discounted items at J. Crew and Banana Republic stores at malls near where she lives in Richmond, Virginia. But her go-to source has become the online subscription service Stitch Fix, which lets her try on clothes at home and decide what to keep.
“I almost never go out to buy now,” says Troy, 50.