I Kan Do It News

Give the Gift of Time - December 2001 Minnesota Monthly

Shop 'Till They Drop by Nick Fauchald - reprinted with the permission of Minnesota Monthly

Stay home and sip tea and let a professional shopper wear his or her shoe leather out hunting for that perfect black cardigan. Individual personal shoppers, like Irene Kato of I Kan Do It (651 647-9921), will conduct a wardrobe consultation with you (you don't even have to clean your closet first), and then shop to fill your needs, while honoring your budget and personal preferences. The consultation costs $75, and then you pay a percentage of the purchase price of clothing she finds. If you don't like an item, no problem ‚ it's returned at no cost. Most large department stores . . . . .

Shop ‘til You Drop, and then some
by Jennifer Gansen

Turning the art of bargain hunting into a career
Reprinted with permission of the Roseville Review - Business Section

If staring blankly into your closet every morning has become a hobby for you as you try to dress for work, perhaps it’s time to organize your closet.

"But I have no time," you say. Or "I’m not sure how to do it." you respond. Well then, why not call in a professional to do the job for you? In fact, why not let her organize what you have and then shop for what’s missing to update and complete your wardrobe?

That’s the idea behind a relatively new business in Falcon Heights. I Kan Do It is a home based business run by Irene Kato. Along with organizing a client’s wardrobe, she will mix and match existing pieces for new combinations as well as make suggestions for new items that can add versatility to a wardrobe.

"I’ve always been interested in fashion and clothing," Kato said. "For years friends came to me for advice on where to find something or for help with putting together specific outfits. Since I love shopping, I was usually able to help them.

"I even thought about making that a new career, once I retired," she added. "Then when I was laid off because of downsizing, I thought, why wait? Why not just open my own business?"

Although Kato admits she has no formal training in the fashion industry, she has always had a wonderful sense of fashion and a love of shopping that gave her hands-on experience in the field. Previously, she had been an office manager at Hamline University for 15 years. She knows what is expected in the work environment as far as a dress code is concerned. In fact, many of her clients are from companies like 3M.

"I got the idea for my business after seeing ads where companies hire someone to shop and run errands for their executives," she explained. "But I wanted to be more involved with fashion, so rather than being strictly a professional shopper, I decided to add the service of closet consultation. It’s something extra that has appealed to a lot of my clients."

Initially, Kato will go to a client’s home and spend about two hours organizing outfits that can be worn with existing clothes. She also asks questions about a client’s preference in color, fabric and clothing style. Then she makes suggestions about what could be added to increase outfit choices.

"When I show clients how to mix and match what they already have, they are just amazed at the options I can give them," Kato said. "Accessories that haven’t worked for years can add new life to many outfits, or matching certain pieces together that were not thought of by the client can add more variety and new style to their wardrobe."

To help clients remember the outfits she creates, Kato hangs tags and attaches them to each piece of clothing. Each tag gives three to four new combinations. She also lists the accessories to use with each one to complete a desired style.

After the closet is organized, Kato then sits with the client and they discuss what should be added to increase the versatility of the wardrobe. Kato offers her services as a personal shopper to find those items.

"Oftentimes my client doesn’t have the extra time to search for an item like I do," Kato said. "Since I’m at the malls almost every day, I can watch for sales and get the needed pieces then. That saves clients a lot of time and money, and they still get the items they need."

The initial consultation of $75 includes organizing the closet, tagging the items and assessing what items are missing from a client’s wardrobe. Clients have the option of looking for the missing items themselves or of retaining Kato’s services as a personal shopper to look for them. The cost of her shopping services is a percentage of the purchases, and varies depending on the item. Clients may even enlist her services without an initial consultation if they already know what they want.

According to Kato, there are some basic items that she sees missing in almost every closet – things that could greatly increase a person’s wardrobe. They include a blazer or suit jacket in a basic color, a good pair of black dress pants or a simple black skirt, and a simple basic dress. With these items to mix and match, almost any look is possible.

"I try to get people to realize that basic colors, like black, navy or brown will give them the most versatility in their wardrobe," Kato explained. "If you start with your key pieces in those colors, almost any accent color will work in an outfit."

One of her favorite places to shop is the Mall of America. She also frequents many of the shops on Hennepin Avenue, in Calhoun Square and at some of the local malls in Roseville.

"Where I shop depends a lot on what clients are looking for and what their budget is," Kato said. "Setting up a budget is one of the most important things I do with my clients. I want them to be satisfied with the product and able to afford it at the same time. If there are no time constraints, I will usually wait until I can find the item on sale."

She is also available to go gift shopping or even grocery shopping if anyone needs those services. "I just love to shop, whether it’s for myself or for others," she said. "My husband even enjoys it. Oftentimes he comes with me to people watch while I shop for some of my clients."

As for the future, Kato says she is hoping to increase the number of clients she serves. She likes the idea of taking her favorite past-time, shopping, and making into a new career for herself. She believes that there will be more demand for her services in the future.

"Today’s young people are so busy, they have no time to do regular errands, let alone watch the stores for a particular item to go on sale" she explained. "Since they are so busy, they don’t want to spend their precious free time shopping with crowds of people. If they can find someone to do it for them, I think they’ll jump at the chance."

Bargain Hunter for Hire

By George Beran
Reprinted with permission from the St. Paul Pioneer Press, April 9, 2000

Irene Kato loves to shop. So much, in fact, that she started a personal shopping service, I Kan Do It Personal Shopper, Etc., to relieve clients of the task.

Since starting the business three years ago, Kato has gone on shopping missions for several clients, mostly women in need of clothes. She wishes she had more clients, particularly men, but is unsure how to market to them. "I know there are individuals out there who don't have time to shop or hate to shop and could use my services", she said. "I haven't quite figured out how to market my services more effectively."

From her home-based office in Falcon Heights, Kato makes shopping trips most anywhere in the Twin Cities to find merchandise for the clients to keep or reject. She does not charge a fee to return items. "I don't just bring the clients one outfit. If I find two or three that are similar, I bring them, too," she said. "I like to keep the client very satisfied."

She also shops for wedding and birthday gifts, luggage, patio furniture or other items. She shops for groceries or runs errands. Her clients tend to be wage earners in their mid-40s with no interest in shopping. November is her busiest shopping month.

Even prior to a trip, she notifies clients in case they want her to find Even prior to a trip, she notifies clients in case they want her to find something. When she and her husband Art, a retired 3M employee, went to Hong Kong, she bought a dress for a client.

Kato, 59, decided to start the business after a downsizing at Hamline University cost her an office manager's job. Rather than retire, she wanted to be more active and independent by operating a business. Friends who turned to her for advice on purchases had urged her for a long time to form a shopping service.

Before taking the plunge, she participated in an entrepreneurial class at the University of St. Thomas. She prepared a business plan, learned to think through business problems and studied marketing.

The class did not dwell very much on networking as a marketing tactic. But Kato believes that entrepreneurs offering a service have much to gain from building contacts through an organizational network.

"That's a much more effective way of selling services," she said.

She networks through Roseville GROW (Giving Referrals to Other Women), the North Suburban Chamber of Commerce and Executive Women International. Passing out business cards is more cost effective than the limited advertising she can afford in a phone directory, newspaper or magazine.

"I've found that a word-of-mouth referral from a client is the best way." She gives a $25 fee discount to clients for referring a customer.

Kato's shopping fees vary by transaction size. On purchases up to $199.99, she charges $25 plus 10 percent of the amount. She charges 25% on purchases from $200 to $499.99 and 20% on purchases of $500 or more.

She offers discounts on fees for shopping and wardrobe consultation on her Web site www.ikandoit.net. She uses the site to advertise the business and present fashion tips.

After she checks a client's wardrobe, she keeps a database of the clothing, preferred styles and colors to help in shopping forays. But she is leery of using the Internet for shopping because she wants to judge the fit, feel and color of clothing. "I'd just as soon do it hands on," she says. Returns of merchandise bought online would be too much of a bother for the business, she says.

Starting a home-based business cost about $3,000. She purchased equipment, furniture, a second telephone line, business cards and brochures. Before long, she learned to print her own cards and brochures on the computer.

"Business cards, fax or e-mail are absolutely essential in this business," she said."You need professional-looking business cards or people won't take you seriously."

When she goes on a shopping mission, she is determined to complete it to the client's satisifaction even if it takes several weeks. She checks small stores as well as giant outlets in search of good values.

"Her toughest assignment was to find a prom dress for a high school senior. She found one that satisfied the client, but it took nearly two months.

Do you have a fashion question?
Email Irene today for her personal - and free - suggestion.

Updated by FJD Company