My Trunk Club Review

I hate shopping. Trunk Club makes it better. Here’s everything you need to know about the personal styling service! 

Updated as of January 2023 – Trunk Club has since shut down since I first wrote this review. While I did love the service, I’ve since found a few other styling services that I recommend. I personally love Revolve’s Styling Experts (you can submit a request for shopping help for an event, vacation, etc. like I did for an anniversary trip).  I’ve heard great things about DailyLook and M.M. LaFluer. I haven’t heard of anyone I know using Wantable or Frank and Oak (but both are worth looking into!). I personally don’t love Stitch Fix.

Here’s my original post, if you’re interested in reading about Nordstrom’s old styling service, Trunk Club.

I’ve been using Trunk Club for over two years, and you can see my experience with a number of trunks in this blog post! But first, what exactly is Trunk Club? Trunk Club is a clothing styling subscription service, similar to Stitch Fix or DailyLook, but is a LOT better for many reasons, which I’ll share in this post! So, let’s dive in.

Note: I’ve heard from a few people that the Trunk Club service is being discontinued but I just got a box a few weeks ago! Maybe they’re phasing it out? Not sure!

Trunk Club Review

I’ve used multiple online styling services over the years, but Trunk Club (while not perfect) is certainly the best one I’ve tried. I’ll break down in this Trunk Club Review what it is, how much it costs, what I like and what I don’t!

Similar tank | Shorts | Similar shoes

Similar tank | Shorts | Similar shoes

What is the Trunk Club

Trunk Club is an online styling service, where clothes are curated for you and shipped to your house to try on before you buy. Trunk Club basically takes the work out of shopping. You don’t have to look for items online and you don’t have to go to a store. Instead, you with work a stylist who sends curated items to you each month (or whatever frequency you like) to try on at home and then you just mail back what you don’t keep.

Step 1.

To get started, you complete your style profile. All that entails is filling out out a quick questionnaire about your style, sizes, preferred price points. You can also note if you’re looking for specific items (like new shoes or a black blazer) or types of clothes for a specific event (like vacation, a wedding or just a wardrobe refresh).

Step 2.

Then, you are assigned a stylist and he or she will send you a preview of what they picked out before it ships. That way, you can remove items you know you won’t like or share if anything is priced too high. They’ve made a recent change that allows you to exchange items in your preview for other options before they send anything to you as well, which I LOVE. With this change, the chances of me liking the items in my Trunk are much higher!

Step 3.

Then, the box ships out for you to try on. You decide what you want to keep, make notes for your stylist on what you’re keeping vs. sending back, and check out online or in the app. And then you mail back anything you don’t want to keep.

Trunk Club offers services for both women and men. My husband has tried Trunk Club a few times and didn’t like it, for the most part. He got a couple of great sweaters, but the jeans and shoes were never his style and they couldn’t quite get it right even with continued feedback on what he didn’t like.

How much does it cost

Each trunk has a $25 styling fee and you are charged when your box ships. However, the $25 goes towards anything you keep and will be deducted at checkout. Or, if you are a Nordstrom credit card holder (I am – it’s so worth it for the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale alone), the styling fee is waived every time. Both Stitch Fix and Trunk Club are pretty inexpensive looking at just the styling fee. But, the price point on the Trunk Club clothes can really vary, depending on what you put in your style profile. I’ve gotten $9 items and I’ve gotten $900 items in my trunk. 🙂

Pants (similar) | Top (similar)| Heels

What I like about the Trunk Club:

PROS

Makes shopping easy

Having clothes show up on my doorstep, that are in my budget, that are my style, and are my size: does it get any easier than that? Nope. And exchanges are easy – you just tell your stylist you want a different size and they’ll get it out.

I try things I normally wouldn’t

In all trunks, my stylist picked things I never would have ordered online, like sparkly heels, a faux suede jacket or a patterned blouse. She’s also sent me some of my go-to’s that I needed to update, like booties and skinny jeans, jean shorts, and simple tops.

Saves time

Shopping can be time intensive, especially since my town doesn’t have great stores. To have access to nice department stores like Nordstrom, I have to drive 1.5 – 2 hours. And even shopping online can take a lot of time to filter through thousands of options. Having a stylist send me options to review that are in my budget saves so much time!

Styling help

I also like being able to work with a stylist so get her advice about styling, sizing, etc. on things that came in my trunk if I’m unsure of something. And, after you get a few boxes, she’ll note what new items you have that could pair with items in previous boxes, which helps to build a wardrobe! It’s sort of like a real-life Pinterest board that auto populates! 🙂 I like that she’ll automatically send a smaller or larger size if she knows it runs large or small.

Free shipping

You never have to pay for shipping when the trunk comes to you or when you send it back. And you don’t have to print off a return label or a shipping label – they include it all in the box and returns are done during checkout on the app or website. I seriously hate printing shipping labels. Lazy? Maybe. But hey, this service is all about convenience! I’ve received all of my boxes quickly too.

Everything is from Nordstrom

My FAVORITE part is that everything is from Nordstrom, which is where I prefer to shop anyway. With Trunk Club, I know the brands and I know they will be quality clothes, which was not the case with other styling services. Plus, if I get something in a Trunk that I love, I can easily buy more colors from Nordstrom.com. I already bought the black version of a leopard sweater I got in my first Trunk Club since I loved it so much.

Rewards Programs

If you are a Nordy Club member, you earn points on Trunk Club purchases like you would shopping in a Nordstrom store (or Nordstrom.com). You can use Nordstrom Notes and gift cards at Trunk Club too!

Price Matching

If you see something cheaper at Nordstrom after you checkout your Trunk, they’ll price match within 14 days of your Trunk Club purchase. I’ve also noticed when something goes on sale at Nordstrom, it’s automatically discounted in my Trunk!

Customer Service

The customer service is really good when I’ve needed to exchange something or send something back if something went wrong. I’ve also used customer service to request more of items I’ve gotten in the past, like my favorite undies and socks!

Easy swaps

Now that Trunk Club allows me to swap out items before they ship to me, I’ve had greater success than in the past. They give me 3-5 alternatives to choose from if I decide to swap an item out from my box. There were a few months where I was not liking almost anything that came, but with this new option, I’ve liked Trunk Club MUCH better. For example, this month, my Trunk preview had a pink blouse I didn’t love. I clicked “Swap” and it showed 5 options to choose from. I choose the pink ruffled top pictured below and I love it. So, I’m doing some shopping with this feature but it’s still narrowed down to save me time.

Outfit linked here

Similar tank | Shorts | Similar shoes

What I don’t like about the Trunk Club

CONS

Yes, there are a few cons to Trunk Club! Nothing is perfect unless you just do all your shopping yourself.

Styling woes

Sometimes things are just a miss! The year or so, I had a few items in my box that just felt way too old for me! Even my husband and a few of my friends said that they looked a bit matronly on me and I’m still going for a youthful vibe! (I mean, who isn’t?)

Dress (similar style, but sold out) | heels

Sizing can be tough to nail and exchanges are okay but not great

This isn’t really a con of Trunk Club since all online shopping can be difficult with sizing. But I guess I expected my stylist to nail it every time since she has my dimensions and also should know how brands fit. But, it’s just one of the challenges of shopping online. And since exchanges are easy, this isn’t a huge deal to me. But, some of my Trunks, I did have a number of things that were too big or way too long even though she knows I’m very petite. I’m 5’1″.

This jumpsuit is super light and comfy but it was CRAZY long on me, even though it was a petite.

If you’ve already paid for something and later decide to exchange an item you use your Nordstrom Credit or Debit card on file to pay for the other size and then they’ll refund the original charge once you mail it back and it arrives to them.

Returns after the fact are not so easy.

While exchanges for a different size or color are easy, returns are not. Unlike Nordstrom’s very generous return policy, the Trunk Club return policy is not so lenient. After you’ve paid for your box and mailed everything back, if you have an issue down the road (like when I got a hole in one of my sweaters a week later), you have to get a return “approved” on a case by case to get a refund or Trunk Club credit. I love shopping at Nordstrom since their return policy is amazing (basically they take returns at any time…) so you have to be SURE you want to keep something.

Bad stylist match is a possibility

If you don’t love your Trunk Club stylist, that could be rough! I also don’t think they keep you with the same stylist like they did in the past. It’s not as obvious to see who my stylist is anymore, so I’m really not sure. In the past, you could request to change your stylist. In your account under Support, you can call or email and they can help switch your stylist. If your trunk style just isn’t aligning, it’s worth trying to call them!

My experience

Overall, I love the Trunk Club and I highly recommend it. I plan to keep using it, but my husband cancelled his service. To give you an idea of what I’ve gotten in Trunks, here are some photos from my most recent Trunk Club shipments!

This sundress was an item that I almost told them not to send when I got my preview. But I decided to try it on just in case, and BOY am I glad I did. I love how easy it is to wear (no complicated bras!), and it’s the perfect length for sandals. I linked everything here.

Outfit linked here

I really loved this Agolde long shorts that I got in my recent box.

I probably wouldn’t have tried these on in the store since I already have jean shorts, but after trying them on from my Trunk, I was SO glad I did. Same with this top. It’s nothing special when it’s not on, but after I tucked it in, I loved the loose fit and light material. Everything is linked here.

Outfit linked here

This blue dress was another that I almost told them to take out of my box when I got the preview. I LOVED it as soon as I tried it on. Just another perk of having someone else tell you what to try. I’ll wear this on a date night with Tommy or even as my Easter Sunday dress. It’s linked here.

Dress linked here

I didn’t end up keeping this dress because I didn’t have anything I could envision it for, but it was super cool. If you’re taller than 5″1, this will probably lay on you slightly better than it did on me, but it was very comfortable! It’s linked here.

Dress linked here

I’ve been able to try lots of Nordstrom workout gear through Trunk Club. This top and jacket were sent in a recent box and I’ve loved them both.

Outfit linked here

They also sent these leggings which were another hit. I’ve always been partial to the Lululemon Fast and Free leggings, but these gave them a run for my money!

Outfit linked here

A fun perk of Trunk Club is that you can add on accessories to any box you want.

I snagged this visor (and would rarely splurge on something like this) but It came and I am OBSESSED. I wear it for golf, the pool, walks with Thomas, etc.

Outfit (more of my favorite golf looks here)

I have typically worn mostly J.Crew swimsuits because I love the simple styles and fun colors. But this swimsuit was a total win from Nordstrom. It fits perfectly, has great coverage in the back, and I love how simple and flattering it is.

Swimsuit

I got this gold paperclip necklace as a Trunk Club accessory and have barely taken it off. It goes with almost everything in my closet (including this one piece) and I don’t even notice I have it on.

Outfit

I had been ready to try some new sunglasses after wearing my beloved Raybans for YEARS. So I requested that they send me a few pairs to try. I LOVE THESE. They’re the perfect size and weight. And they’re casual enough I wear for walks and runs as well as with cuter outfits. (That’s my brother – do we look alike? 🙂 )

I loved them so much that I ordered another color!

Outfit linked here

And here are photos showing how I’ve worked Trunk Club items into my existing wardrobe!

I never would have picked this blouse (sold out now) out. But I loved it when I got it in a Trunk! It pairs well with slacks or jeans!

Jeans | similar booties

These shoes were a pick from Trunk Club and I LOVE them. I have them paired with my favorite jeans (one of my must-have not-skinny jeans pairs!) and a black wrap blouse I already owned (similar).

If you’ve tried Trunk Club, I’d love to hear your review and experience!

Here are some other things that came in my recent boxes!