Canada's Word of Mouth Discovery #6 - Secrets from Your Sister

Perhaps it's not surprising that the last two Canadian Word of Mouth discoveries I've made are almost exclusively targeted at female clientele. After all, women make 81% of all retail purchases and they also make much more effective word of mouth enthusiasts...they even talk about things that men won't even go near ---like bras and underwear.

Secrets from Your Sister (SFYS) is a wonderful helpful word of mouth-driven retailer in Toronto that tackles a frequently uncomfortable subject and garment - undergarments. Owner Jennifer Klein decided to focus on the "lost art" of bra fitting and during the setup of SFYS realized that all women (from B cups to Ls) have the same problem - how do you reliably find a bra that fits? Enter SFYS.

Consider Jessica and her staff the "concierges of bra fitting". Women, and even some men,  are not used to having such a comfortable retail experience in a non-discriminatory and helpful environment. Having interviewed Jennifer,  you can tell through her missionary zeal - this is less a business and more a passion and a cause.

She is candid and honest with her customers and provides knowledgeable advice you won't likely get from the big mall store in the hopes of generating the reaction "wow, I can't believe how confident I am and how good this looks and feels".

She finds some women, are more bee-like in their conversations with others and make very effective evangelists. The most zealous of these supporters (and supported!) keep their antenna tuned to new arrivals through email alerts, regular newsletters and girl parties.

Secrets has now also branched out into a couple of really smart and insightful areas - jogging/athletic bras and male gift givers (and occasional wearers). They have an appetite for expanding beyond their Bloor Street premises and planning a revamped website for the new year.

Laws of Word of Mouth at Work with Secrets From Your Sister:

#4 - The Law of the Expert - when something is complex we turn to expert guides as a time saver and important validation of our thoughts - in this valkuable niche, nobody knows well-fitting underwear like SFYS

#11 The Law of Community - Secrets has a target audience with an intimate and  natural connection to each other - if your willing to talk about underwear with your friends (and they do), your likely willing to talk about a lot of other stuff too

#15 The Law of Emotion - when a product captures an occasion or mood, the emotions are powerful motivators to talk - when buy something that improves the way you feel, something you wear all day and something that touches your skin --you talk and share with others

#22 The Law of the Category Jumper - Secrets is so brilliantly innovative and unusual that they have created their own category for themselves - The Bra-Fitting Experts - not an easily found talent at your local big box Bras 'R Us