Clear Out the Emotional Baggage

During the First Fitting

Does your client bring along emotional baggage to her fittings? Of course she does. We all have it. Keep that in mind while you're pinning her garment.

For some folks the emotional baggage might be obvious. A mother of the bride, for instance, could be dealing with a whole range of feelings. She's excited, she's sad, she's distracted. She could be feeling pressure to look skinnier than she really is, pressure to get all the wedding details right, pressure to be the perfect hostess, and on and on and on.

With others, it is not so easy to detect. Here's where getting to know your client a little will really help. Try to find out what her interests are. You and she may share the same hobby or sports love. You're trying to get to know her style, so anything you can get her talking about will open up her personality to you.

Chatting with a Purpose
Every fitting begins with a conversation. Bear in mind that you and your client have two different images in your heads about her garment. It's your job to bring those images as close to identical as you can get.
Ask questions. First ask about what it is that bothers her about the garment? What brought her to you today? Try to get an idea about how she likes her clothes to feel. Try to determine who she is trying to impress with this outfit.

We're All Trying to Impress Someone
Sometimes it's a subtle motivation, but it's definitely there. We all like to make a good impression. It's human nature. It's actually not always a bad thing either. It's how we pick out mates, it influences our choice of friends and it permeates all of our relationships, even when we encounter a stranger.

In trying to get to that emotional baggage, which questions will give you insight into her feelings about this garment? How about some of these?

Have you been enjoying this weather?
I've been so busy lately, how about you?
My weekends have been packed recently, isn't it crazy?
My weekends have been slow recently, isn't it crazy?

If you start getting the feeling that your questions are becoming a bit more like an interrogation, then just throw out some leading statements like:

The kids in the neighborhood are all excited about (a holiday? an event?)
I happened to see an outfit like this in (local shop) that was really attractive.
I made the most delicious (snack? meal?)the other day...

What Does all This Small Talk Tell You?
Actually, it can tell you plenty. Pay attention to which questions engage her more. What does she like to talk about? That will tell you where her passions are.
You may learn whether or not she has a family, where she likes to shop, what she does in her free time. Her answers will tell you what kind of clothes she is most comfortable in and how fussy she is about her looks.
Now you can ask questions about the garment itself. You have an idea about her tastes and her preferences.

In Conclusion ...
Don't assume anything about your client. Get to know her a bit before you start pinning her clothes. Unpack some of her emotional baggage. You will get outstanding results if you are patient with this. You'll gain her trust and you'll gain insight into how you can help her to look her best. It turns into a team effort between the two of you.
You will end up with a happy customer.
And that's a win for both of you!

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SBI!