New Subscription-free Shopping Targets Children’s Market Sounds Very Affordable Luxury-ish
Ask any parent, and they will tell you how frustrating it can be that their children tend to outgrow their clothes. For some parents there is the ongoing quest to make them stylish as well. Lucky for those that can afford to spend $20 plus per item because the growing subscription free box service business is now targeting children’s clothes. While this may seem rather Affordable Luxury to us, looking at the recent acquisition of Dollar Shave Club by Unilever and growing emphasis of Trunk Club at Nordstrom, we are likely to see more entrants and tie ups in the coming months.
Created by a team of parents with experience in retail and tech, Manhattan-based Rockets of Awesome launched Tuesday. The data-driven startup aims to simplify the process of shopping for kids. It will distribute boys’ and girls’ clothing that it designs and manufactures. In February, the startup raised $7 million in seed funding from LAUNCH, Forerunner Ventures and General Catalyst Partners. Rockets of Awesome’s team of stylists formerly worked for major brands including J.Crew and Kate Spade, among others.
“Shopping for kids’ clothes, size 2 to 14, is an ongoing chore that requires parents to shop every two to three months.” Similarly to Stitch Fix, a personalized shopping service for women, parents create an online profile for their child by selecting preferred colors, sizes and styles, ranging from trendy to preppy. Once the child’s preferences are entered, Rockets of Awesome will send a 12-item box each season, or about four times a year. Each item will be roughly $20, making each shipment approximately $250. But users have to pay only if they decide to keep all the clothes. There is no subscription fee or minimum charge
