Want Clothes That Fit Like A Dream? Try These Four Crowdsourced Fashion Brands

Crowdsourcing—the act of soliciting intel from the hive mind to inform product design—is becoming increasingly common in fashion, leading to clothing that’s more functional and fits a wider range of bodies. Here are a few of our favourite crowdsourced finds.

Alder Apparel

Canadian co-founders Mikayla Wujec, a National Geographic researcher and sustainability consultant, and Naomi Blackman, a former Joe Fresh marketer, launched Alder’s “open-air pant” on Kickstarter last summer—and then incorporated design feedback from 600 women. “A high waist and lots of pockets were common requests,” says Blackman. Geared for outdoor activities, the pant ($148) also features reflective strips and a D-ring for clipping.

Summersalt

Summersalt collected over 1.5 million body measurements from 10,000 women to inform the fit of its stylish, affordable and sustainably sourced swimwear. Now, new travel-wear items, including the Sleeveless Day to Night Bodysuit (US$45), benefit from data-driven fit as well, making the pieces less likely to ride up or cut you off at the waist.

ThirdLove

Over 15 million women have completed ThirdLove’s “Fit Finder” quiz, generating over 600 million data points that help inform the precise fit of its 78 available bra sizes. Recently, the San Francisco–based brand’s Classic Unlined Plunge Bra (US$68), was released for the thousands of customers who requested the plunge of a bralette with the smoothness of a zero-gap, unlined foam cup.

Knix

“Every single part of Knix has been crowdsourced,” says Joanna Griffiths, founder of the Toronto-based company. “From designing our own sizing system, to ideas for new products, to casting calls, we are constantly involving input from our customers.” One Instagram poll that drew responses from 50,000 teen girls became the largest teen bra survey ever conducted, and drove the creation of the “knixteen” line.