Stylist Chantelle Znideric and her business partner and digital media expert, Hayden Allen-Vercoe, established iStylista – www.istylista.com - after recognising that many professional women want to keep up with the latest styles but don’t always have the time to visit stores or the knowledge as to what truly suits them.

In 2007 the pair made it their ambition to bring personal styling and the very best in online designer clothes to women, regardless of their location, so they focused on appealing to an international clientele through an innovative online personal shopping service.

iStylista has since become a hugely popular online personal shopping service managed exclusively by a team of professional personal stylists, overseen by Chantelle. 

The company’s personal stylists handpick every single item of clothing before they are presented to customers in their ‘Virtual Changing Rooms’ on the iStylista website.  Members simply log into iStylista.com at their convenience and view items of clothing their stylist has selected to review and potentially buy, according to their own unique body shape, budget, size and natural colouring (to name but a few features).  iStylista also provides free personalised style guides full of style advice specific to each customer.

“With an increasing trend in women filling executive positions as well as returning to work after having children, most professional ladies have a severe shortage of time when it comes to their style and shopping” explains Chantelle.  “There is also growing recognition that enhanced ‘personal branding’ helps you to climb the career ladder.  This means that demand for an online personal shopping concierge service has never been so high.”

As a member of the West Surrey and North East Hants Innovation & Growth Team, iStylista has benefited from the advice of Portfolio Director, Malcolm Loucks, and the support of the IGT network.

“The Innovation & Growth Team has been a really useful source of advice, guidance and support,” explains Hayden.  “Our expertise lays in fashion and digital media, so important things like getting our business plan sorted, getting our numbers straight and generally having a good business sounding board have been invaluable”.

“We are often brimming to full with ideas, so it’s important to have someone alongside who is impartial but has the expertise and experience to say what may or may not work.  Malcolm has been able to advise us on aspects of our business which we knew very little about to begin with, such as our sales channel and franchising opportunities.

“He also helped us to secure funding for the business at an important period of our early development.

“Finally, it’s also been great for us to be able to network with other businesses in a similar situation to ours – the business breakfasts and clinics on legal issues and pricing have been really very insightful.”

Commenting, Malcolm Loucks, said: “Chantelle and Hayden clearly have a very strong knowledge of their own areas of expertise and they are amendable to advice on other areas of business that typically face any innovative new company.  The company has made good use of several of our clinics and we expect and look forward to many more achievements from them in the months ahead.”

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