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“When women succeed at work, the world is a better place,” says Jennifer Braunschweiger, vice president of brand marketing at MM.LaFleur. That conviction is the core belief behind the apparel company, which aims to support women’s professional success by taking the hassle, guesswork and discomfort out of dressing for work. Braunschweiger joins this episode of Retail Gets Real while attending NRF 2019: Retail’s Big Show in New York City to share how her team is building the brand.
MM.LaFleur stylists empower customers through the company’s signature product: Bento Boxes — busy women fill out a short survey and stylists hand-pick a selection of clothes to send to them. The Bento Box is not a subscription service; it is sent for free and customers can return products they don’t want to keep. The more Bento Boxes a customer gets, the better their personal stylist becomes in tailoring boxes to individual tastes. “[Our stylists] are an exceptional group of wonderful humans,” Braunschweiger says.
MM.LaFleur relies on styling, thoughtfully designed products and building a community to achieve its mission. “We are about making it easy for her to figure out what to wear,” Braunschweiger says, “and we are also about providing clothes that are really thoughtfully designed.” The company manufactures all its own designs and create high-quality pieces meant to fit a woman well, serve her needs and let her work shine. Details like deep pockets, adjustable hemlines, hidden hooks for bra straps and wrinkle-free material all contribute to the high quality and “hidden moments that reveal themselves to you when you wear them,” Braunschweiger says.
Listen to the episode to learn more about how MM.LaFleur is redefining what it means to shop smart, and how humans supporting humans makes it all possible.