We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Cari Harris a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Cari, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you tell us about a time where you or your team really helped a customer get an amazing result?
My job as a personal stylist representing the luxury brands Etcetera and Freida Rothman is always to help solve problems for my clients. Whether that means boosting their overall confidence so they can go out and tackle the day to day successes and challenges they experience in their industries, planning ahead to their next public speaking event so they know they can step on that stage looking and feeling their best, or by helping them build a complete wardrobe that can help to meet their lifestyle needs whether professional or within their private lives. It’s one stop shopping without the stress. I am their fashion concierge!
I have clients who come from all professional backgrounds. At any given moment you might find me working with an attorney, banker or stay at home mom. Each of these women will have needs that are varied when it comes to what I can offer them. For example, my client Linda, a corporate attorney who is a partner at her firm, doesn’t have the time to rummage through the racks. So for her, I am able to put together a procured list of looks that will provide her with the ability to go into the office looking and feeling professional. She knows that the wardrobe we create gives her that pulled together feeling so she can now tackle all the other externalities of her job. She tells it best in the following quote “As an attorney, I work in an industry where public perception and first impressions can make or break future opportunities. I love shopping Etcetera because the looks make me feel confident in knowing that when I take the stage or for a speaking or other professional engagement I will look pulled together, uniquely stylish and not just like “any other lawyer” (or worse like I am wearing a suit cut for one of my male colleagues). Every visit with Cari Harris, who is both my wardrobe consultant and a friend, has been a treat to look forward to and an experience that very few other shopping venues I frequent is able to match. Thanks Etcetera and Cari and the encouragement to dress with an attitude of polish and success.”
Cari, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
My name is Cari Harris and I am a personal stylist representing the women’s luxury clothing brand Etcetera. It’s been 19 years of selling the Etcetera brand, and a true labor of love working with some amazing women over the past almost two decades.
I started long ago when my then 5 year old daughter, Isabella, was heading off to kindergarten. I was looking for something to do that would take me back to work without the full immersion of a 50+ hour work week which I knew would take me away from my daughter and her needs. That’s when I discovered Etcetera through a girlfriend. I started shopping the brand, and found every time I wore something I would receive compliments whether from people I already knew or complete strangers. I was already in love with the brand, and knew it would be that much easier to sell something that I already loved.
Etcetera was providing to its clients effortless, casual, and approachable clothing based on the latest trends and luxury textiles from all over the world. Clothing designed for everything life has to offer. We offer the unique opportunity for the customer to experience a one of a kind personalized experience with every shop. It’s the difference between buying an outfit and building a wardrobe. My goal is to make the experience easy and fun. No rummaging through the racks, just a one on one engagement that make the client leave feeling their experience was worth their time.
Four years ago, I added the luxury jewelry brand Freida Rothman. Freida was also someone who dedicated her unique talents to creating a quality product that stood out in the field. I knew that I could sell her jewelry and accessories alongside the Etcetera clothing, and that it would compliment my clients clothing purchases seamlessly. Part of Freida’s mission was creating a campaign called WOMEN OF STRENGTH which aimed to pay homage to her holocaust surviving grandparents, and that would align with my mission of celebrating the unique strengths my clients were giving to their professions, their families and to the needs of others. It has been a winning partnership with a lot of happy customers!
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
I think my story of resilience is not unusual to any of us who went through Covid. Our luxury brand industry was definitely not in high demand as we were embarking on shutdowns. People weren’t going anywhere, so therefore weren’t dressing. We were having to reevaluate clients needs, and that initially took shape with our Etcetera designers creating a more relaxed stay at home collection so that we could still appeal to their needs. Some were able to shop while others decided to hold back. Sales consultants had to get creative with how they would sell these products as we were socially distancing. So we got creative by selling outside on our patios and in backyard courtyards. We utilized FaceTime and Zoom to still be able to share product visually, and then clients would place orders based on those experiences. Oddly, because everyone was zooming jewelry became a way to differentiate one another on the calls because visually we were only seeing people from the waist up. It was a very confusing time that really stretched us all creatively. I am very happy to say we have bridged the gap as both a company, and individually as sales reps. It was a true test of resilience to be able to endure given all the challenges we faced. I am happy to say we are stronger because of it. It taught us persistence, and we learned how to step outside of the boxes that we live in to grow in new and more unique ways.
What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?
Word of mouth has always driven new client success in this industry. People see others in the clothing or wearing the jewelry, and ask where the wearer purchased it. In the early years we didn’t have social media as a driver, nor did we have retail brick and mortar stores, so the only way one could experience the line was to know an agent who sold the brand. Of course, things have evolved since then so we now have an online presence where anyone looking for an agent can input their information into the “search for a stylist” field on our public website. Having said that, still to this day our best resource for new business comes from other successful women sharing with their friends, and or colleagues who they’re shopping with.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://cariharris.etcetera.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/carimarie26
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/cariharrisetcetera?
- Other: Freida Rothman Website URL:
freidarothman.com/CariH
Image Credits
Merritt Photo
Freida Rothman