PERSONAL SHOPPERS All the customer needs to do is show up

The clothes are brought to you in a private dressing room.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
SANTA ANA, Calif. -- Christine Farino is a busy, busy girl.
She goes full time to Chapman University, where she's a junior. She also works part time as a real estate agent. It's tough enough for her to find time to grab a latt & eacute;, never mind updating her wardrobe.
That's what makes Farino the perfect target for Macy's new ad campaign. The department store wants more young, time-crunched women such as Farino to use its personal-shopping service -- known as Macy's by Appointment. For the first time, Macy's placed an ad for the service in the November issue of InStyle Magazine. The wording of the ad, which claims that personal shoppers are "here to help you find what you need to rock sassy, fresh style," clearly isn't aimed at the soccer-mom crowd or corporate exec types.
"Personal shoppers have been around for quite some time, and the reality is we have success working with the younger customer," said Shonaree Michael, director of marketing for Macy's Special Services.
And when you think about it, it is a pretty hip, cool and fun thing. You simply call and make an appointment. You tell your personal shopper your size, what type of clothes you're looking for, maybe which designers you like. Give her your budget. Then simply show up.
All the clothes the personal shopper has selected for you will be waiting in a private area. You'll get a robe. Sparkling water. And all the time -- and privacy -- you need to try on the clothes. She'll bring you shoes, jewelry, a bag. If you need a different size or color or style, if you'd like to try it on with a different pair of shoes, she'll go back to the floor to search for you while you relax.
Farino had no idea Macy's had someone who would do all this for her. She'd heard of personal shoppers but always imagined they were for movie stars, or at least for people who had boatloads of money.
She's certainly had her share of near-panic experiences while braving the mall around the holidays. She's faced the racks and racks of clothing surrounded by hordes and hordes of shoppers. She's waited in those long lines to get into the dressing rooms, only to feel stressed when she finally got there.
She's also turned around and walked right out the door.
"I literally got claustrophobic," Farino said. "I was getting so overwhelmed by all the people. It would be nice to have a room to your own, with peace and quiet and not have any rush around you. When I've been trying to do my shopping, I would wish I had someone to do this for me. So I'd want to know how much they charge for this."
Price is right
Actually, it's free.
"I couldn't see why you wouldn't want to do this, if it's free," Farino said. "Sometimes I feel like I'm searching over every article of clothing in a store to find something I like. It would just make it so much easier. I'm always short on time. I know a lot of young girls who are working and going to school. It seems like you're always running out of time.
"If they could bring stuff to me, and it's free, that's awesome."
This is what Agatha Dura does for a living. She's a personal shopper at Macy's in Costa Mesa, Calif. She is knowledgeable about all the departments in the store, from women's clothes to housewares to luggage to cosmetics. That way, she can cross-shop for you, fulfilling whatever needs you might have.
She does not have many young women using her service. She thinks personal shopping might appeal more to an older shopper who might, for instance, be getting back into the workforce and is less confident in picking out her new wardrobe.
On the other hand, she sees young women come in to Macy's trendy Impulse department, where they drop $158 on jeans and $98 on a tee shirt.
"If that's the money these girls are spending on two pieces of clothing, then wouldn't they want the royal treatment?" Dura said. "By just booking an appointment and coming in, we can make it all happen. I don't know if the girls want help. But they don't like to wait in the lines, either, for the fitting room. It's a lot more organized, and it doesn't cost them anything."
So what's in it for Macy's? Why try to bring in the college crowd, which typically has fewer dollars to spend?
Besides, Macy's isn't exactly the first place the happening people think to go to scope out the latest fashion.
Customer loyalty
"I do think traditionally a department store was where our parents shopped," Michael said.
"It's very important to develop customer loyalty early on in someone's life. We can help make their lives simpler in college, and that develops the loyalty to continue to shop at Macy's and share with friends and family for years to come."
Farino is sure sold. She started shopping there recently after receiving some gift certificates. She said she was surprised to find she can see all the latest styles there -- that is, when she actually has a few spare minutes. Anything that would make her life a little simpler is something she'd be thrilled to try.
"If they really marketed it as something that's no charge, if that was really clear, I could see a lot of college students or young 20-somethings doing that, Farino said. "For instance, I know in my mind I want a red pinstriped suit, but I could never find it and didn't have time to search for it. If I could just call my personal shopper. Talk about the time I would save. It would just be amazing. That would be a great stress relief."
And that's exactly Macy's' point.