BISHHHH, HEYYYY!! I gotcha covered and I’m spilling all of my tips and tricks as well as my fave lingerie I have in my own client closet!
Fun fact: editing this 2 years later – I’m not so low key a hoarder and have over 400 pieces of lingerie now. Whoops.
*Scroll all the way down for a list of my favorite products, pieces, etc*
I went back and forth for literally years on whether or not I wanted to create a client closet. Would I be wasting money? What sizes should I include? Will my clients even utilize it? Where the fuck do I buy lingerie? Will my clients think that it’s even sanitary enough? Annnddd how can I make it sanitary enough?! Ugh, so many Q’s!
When I finally took the jump and did the damn thing, I was scared shitless. Let me tell you what I did right AND wrong so you can skip the wrong! 😉
Disclaimer: my post includes affiliate links through Amazon. Ya girl makes commission from purchases made through these links to support my unhealthy addiction to online shopping. You do NOT get charged anything extra for using these links!
Do’s + Don’ts
1. DO Purchase pieces that YOU love in your size to start out with! Why? If you order it in your normal size and it’s too small/large you’ll have a good gauge for how it’ll fit another client’s body. Is it too small/large in the chest or the bottoms? Is it stretchy? Do you have trouble pulling it over your hips? Is it flattering to your smaller/larger chest or other features?
2. DON’T purchase pieces with clients in mind. I know that’s super difficult but as mentioned above, sizing with lingerie isn’t consistent. You don’t want to order something, hype a client up about this piece that will look FIRE on her, wait a week+ for delivery just to find out it has zero stretch and won’t come close to fitting over her chest or is way too big…
3. DO get nice hangers to display your pieces. That sounds dumb, but trust me it makes all the difference! I use velvet hangers with silver hook things, it helps the lingerie not slip off and allows you to fit more on a rack because they’re thinner than plastic hangers. I purchase mine from Ross, TJ Maxx and Amazon!
4. DON’T feel like you have to purchase a shit ton all at once! Seriously, purchase 5 things from Shein, Amazon, Savage X Fenty, Lingerie Diva, etc and let your audience know (past/present clients, IG followers, FB group, email list, or wherever your people are).
5. DO have a discounted model call: X% off for signing a model release and incorporating one or more of your client closet pieces into their session for promo purposes. I don’t personally do free model calls, I find it’s so much more valuable to both my clients and I to still charge for the service I’m providing. The discount they receive is incentive to book, you get your bills paid AND content for your socials, blog, etc.
6. DON’T feel the need to buy the same piece in a wide range of sizes. It’s one thing if you want to, I may be the odd man out on this but I find it completely unnecessary. Your closet will grow much slower if you do this. Think about your client closet as extra credit, if you have it – it’ll help, if not, it will NOT hurt you/your business. You don’t need to completely outfit your clients, encourage them to bring things of their own, most of my clients end up using 1-2 of my pieces and the rest are things they brought with my instruction and this Pinterest board I whipped up for inspo. If the size you have won’t fit them properly, write a static page on your site or blog post that you can update with your fave pieces for them to order – see mine for example (linked at the bottom of the page and in point 4.) This way, they can get a sense of direction when looking for things to wear during their session!
7. DO have fun with it! Don’t let it stress you out! When looking at lingerie sites, sort the price from low to high, begin by purchasing less expensive pieces, use discount codes where applicable and don’t create a financial burden just because you want your client closet to be fabulous! It took me 3 years to get mine to the 250+ pieces I currently have. It’s an investment!
Here’s how I structure my client closet and all that I do – remember this works for ME and won’t necessarily be best practices for you. Take what you want and leave what you don’t! There isn’t one “right” way to have a client closet. On that note, it’s YOUR client closet, you can change up how you do things whenever you want!
- No try on appointments. Ya girl doesn’t have time for that shit. When I’m not seeing clients, I’m at home in my pjs with my family and won’t be making the 25 min drive to my studio lol. But really, no. I showcase a good majority of the pieces I have on a separate Instagram with a quick description of who the pieces will fit. Instagram.com/llphotocloset so you can take a peek.
- My client closet is available to every client, no additional cost – it’s included within the cost of their session.
- Instead of broadcasting that a piece is a size medium, I say “fits small-medium” or whatever size range it fits. Why do I do this? Well, as you’ll find when ordering pieces that are your true size, most lingerie is NOT true to size especially when ordering from Shein, Amazon, or other less expensive sites. I never want my clients to go into their session thinking “oh, I’m usually a M but I need to pick out pieces that are a size L or XL because it runs small…” NO! Not today, satan. I want them to feel as beautiful as they truly are and telling them they actually have to go up a size or two in clothes is not the way to start off. You feel me?
- Clients do not have to reserve pieces to wear unless it’s a date that I’m traveling and seeing multiple clients per day. More often than not I only see 1-2 clients per day.
- I hand wash the crotch portion of each piece after worn (wearing gloves bc ew) and then toss into my washing machine using this Lysol Laundry Sanitizer (0% bleach)! I probably should use lingerie bags but it’s a fun game I play – detangling all of the strings and shit from each other because I’m a dumb bitch. But really though, buy lingerie bags. Do what I say, not what I do… These are great, I have them but forget to use them.
All of my fave things! 10/10 would recommend:
Hope all of this helps! Drop a comment with any Q’s below or send me a message on Instagram!
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