For many consumers, clothing is becoming more complicated, not less.
Weight loss drugs reshape the body faster than it can be stored in the wardrobe. dating applications are putting new pressure on how people present themselves. And in parts of the United States, access to fashion retail is disappearing altogether.
For Stitch Fix, those moments of friction become opportunities. As the styling service works to reposition itself after a multi-year anniversary, CEO Matt Baer is betting less on traditional fashion demographics and more on moments of change, from weight loss journeys to breakups. This strategy has shaped how companies acquire customers, build products and deploy AI.
“We’re getting really good at targeting smaller, very specific client segments,” Baer told Glossy during an interview at Shoptalk Spring. “An example of that is GLP-1 users. Anyone going through a body transformation needs to change their wardrobe. They need help finding a style and fit for the job at every stage, and we have a stylist who can guide them.”
a significant opportunity. Nearly 12% of Americans have used GLP-1 drugs for weight loss, according to the RAND 2025 report, with the highest use among women aged 50-64. Prescriptions for drugs like Ozempic have more than tripled since 2020, and another 14% of Americans say they like taking them.
For fashion, trends create new types of customer needs. People using GLP-1 often experience rapid and continuous body changes, requiring frequent clothing updates in various sizes.
Demand is already showing up in Stitch Fix’s data. In the March 11 second quarter earnings call, Baer said that the customer mentioned about the weight loss in their requests for their next “Fixes” or assortments of stylist-curated products, has tripled over the last two years. It would also jump 75% year-over-year in the most recent quarter.
Another unexpected segment with potential for Stitch Fix is the newly divorced man.
“About 80% of the items in a man’s closet are bought by other people,” Baer said. “When that changes, they often don’t have the ability or history to go shopping on their own. At the same time, they may care more about how they look when they leave the house, especially if they’re heading into the dating world.
The company has tested targeted marketing on the dating platform, although Baer refused to specify which active. The idea is to reach customers at a time when personal presentation is becoming newly relevant and offer services that eliminate friction.
These efforts are in line with the company’s broader focus on time-constrained professionals, such as nurses, teachers and military workers. In each case, the common thread is limited time and must show up looking put together.
The strategy comes as Stitch Fix begins to show clearer signs of momentum. On March 11, the company reported second-quarter revenue of $341.3 million, up 9.4% year-over-year, marking the fourth consecutive quarter of growth. Revenue per active client reached $577, the highest in its history as a public company.
CFO David Aufderhaar said new-client acquisition and re-engagement both grew year over year for the second consecutive quarter, while retention reached its healthiest level in nearly four years. He added that the value of life 90 days now has increased year to year for 10 consecutive quarters, up 5% in the latest period.
His performance stands out against a wider slowdown in clothing. Stitch Fix said it outperformed the US apparel market, which contracted 0.5% over the same period, according to Circana data.
At the same time, companies are layering technology to support a more personalized approach. Over the past 18 months, Stitch Fix has rebuilt many of its experiences around AI, both for customers and internal workers.
One of the newest features allows users to see themselves in a full style outfit generated from their data. Customers upload images, and the system generates shoppable displays that reflect preferences, sizes and budgets.
“Client satisfaction is through the roof,” Baer said. “Any client who interacts with that experience sees their sales increase 100% over the next 90 days.” In the earnings call, Baer added that 75% of clients who use the feature return to it in the following month, suggesting it has become a recurring part of how customers shop.
This experience is built on years of first-party data, allowing Stitch Fix to produce personalized, fully shoppable outfits. Feedback on the appearance produced becomes another input for stylists, tightening the loop between human skills and machine suggestions.
AI is also reshaping the company’s product strategy. Stitch Fix uses it to design private label collections, drawing on proprietary data to inform everything from silhouette to color. This includes long-standing brands like Market & Spruce and 41 Hawthorn, as well as newer additions like Montgomery Post and The Commons, launching in 2024. Incorporating AI to inform product and predict demand, for example, has cut four to six weeks from development time while improving performance, according to the company.
Private labels are becoming more important, with Stitch Fix reporting strong growth in these brands and increasing customer response to quality and value.
All of this is happening against a backdrop of declining access to physical retail, in general, for many Americans.
Baer refers to large parts of the country, where consumers have little or no access to contemporary brands or style services, as “fashion deserts”. As department stores close by and malls continue to struggle, entire areas are losing access to fashion retail.
“One of my clients lives in a town with a population of 159,” Baer said. “She doesn’t have access to the brands we carry or to a stylist who can help her put together an outfit.
Stitch Fix isn’t alone in trying to digitize personal style. In 2025, retailers and startups are accelerating investments in AI-driven shopping tools. Asos introduced an AI stylist called “Styled for You,” while Poshmark launched a redesigned app centered around an AI-powered discovery feed. At the same time, a new wave is starting to build AI native style platforms. Daydream, launched in June 2025, offers conversational shopping, while SpreeAI and DressX focus on virtual try-on and clothing generation.
What sets Stitch Fix apart is the scale of first-party data and the feedback loop between clients, stylists and algorithms. The model relies on continuous input, from style quizzes to purchase behavior, to refine recommendations over time rather than a single transaction.
This combination of catering to geographic gaps, targeting life stages and personalization based on data points to greater ambitions. Stitch Fix no longer positions itself as a subscription box or simply a style service. It works to become a more continuous presence in the way customers find and buy clothes.
The company is designing a feature to run more frequently Engagement, intended to bring customers to its application on a near-daily basis instead of only when a shipment arrives, according to Baer. Over time, this type of habit-building is expected to translate into higher spending and a larger share of clothing purchases.
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