Katie Walker and Nicole Matthys are Fashion Experts at Scheels. Walker is an expert at the store in Moorhead (Minn.) and a former member of the North Dakota State University women's basketball team. Matthys is an expert in the Eden Prairie (Minn.) store and loves sports, especially outdoors. Both share their opinions on clothing, athletics, and working in the fashion department at Scheels.
Scheels: How has your background in athletics been important as a Fashion Expert?
Katie: "Yes, having an athletic background is really nice when I get middle-aged people, everyone coming in asking about clothes, what they should be running in, working out in. It's fun and I get to direct them to the right area."
Nicole: "Having an athletic background helps when you can use personal testimony for the customers. We can tell them what we've used, it helps. I went to school for retail merchandising, so I've always had a thing for fashion. I actually saw Scheels at a job fair, and realized they were coming to the Eden Prairie location; I had only known the Mankato location. I talked to the manager and had a couple interviews and realized that Scheels carried fashion, which I didn't know. I was really excited. I now run a couple of fashion shops at our store.
Scheels: Can you talk about the variety of brands that Scheels sells?
Katie: "We have a variety of brands, from Silver to Hurley, Billabong all the way up to Under Armour and Nike. It's a pretty nice arrangement of clothes."
Nicole: "We're a smaller location in the mall. We're only clothing and shoes, so a lot of people don't know that about Eden Prairie Scheels. We carry higher-end fashion and obviously athletic clothes. Just a little different than your larger Scheels stores."
Scheels: What's the hottest item or brand that you're selling at the moment?
Katie: "Right now, since we just got done with the Fargo Marathon, probably Under Armour. Nike has been pretty popular for us too. They've been popular because of the material; it's really nice, especially when you're working out, wicking away moisture and the comfort of the materials."
Nicole: "The North Face is always hot. The quality and style of their brand is what makes them popular. They're always coming out with new things, and it's very practical."
Scheels: What do you think are the hottest trends for this summer and fall?
Katie: "Anything from Closet Romantic to Tresics have been popular items. For back-to-school items, I would say your tank tops, from thin strap to a thicker strap; they've been very popular so far this year. Also Silver shorts have been coming around."
Nicole: "I've seen a lot of bright and bold colors going into fall again, very trendy."
Scheels: Why are some of the higher end fashion items so popular?
Katie: "Definitely Silver, Billabong, Hurley are the top ones at Scheels. They fit every body style. Also, Under Armour has some recycled shirts ight now; some of those have been pretty popular this year."
Nicole: "We carry everything from your young women's fashion to your mom's fashion. Women's athletic, men's athletic, a little bit of everything. Very good price points from low-end to high-end. Our higher end fashion, we have Silver Jeans, it appeals to a lot of customers because there's a jean for every customer, without the different fits. Free People - higher end fashion line. For athletics, Nike, Adidas, Under Armour, there's something for everyone."
Scheels: What do you feel is most important to Scheels' female customer?
Katie: "I would say style, comfort, fit; all three are important. The experience of them coming in to us, and getting them into the right clothes aa far as the style and fit. It has to be functional, especially if you're going out: to dinner, working out, or you want to have a nice looking outfit on."
Scheels: Do you get a fulfilling feeling when you can help others with a specific need?
Katie: "It's very fulfilling to have that customer come in and we get them into the right clothes, the right fit, and make them feel comfortable. It's a very rewarding feeling."
Scheels: Talk about the climate, summer, winter fashion, having that versatility living in Fargo. Is it fun selling for all the different seasons we get here?
Katie: "Yes we get everything from snow storms in April to really hot weather in August, almost every temperature. You can come on in, we'll definitely get you into the right clothes. The fashions change so much, we try to keep up with that, and we're pretty good at it."
Scheels: How do you determine what product they need?
Katie: "You have to ask a ton of questions, from who is it for to what you are using it for. What kind of fit do you like. If you like the tight or loose fit. If they like specific colors, I can point them in a certain direction as well. Quite a few qualifying questions."
Nicole: "If a customer comes in looking for a certain item, I grab other items that they might like, or that I've had and I think they should try it. They get a majority of the items because they didn't see it when they looked around the store, and realized yes, they did need it."
Scheels: Do you especially enjoy outfitting the athletes and getting them into good clothes?
Katie: "I love when the athlete comes in and is looking for an outfit; I've tried almost all the stuff, so I know exactly how it fits."
Nicole: "We make sure that we qualify the customer, and really listen to their needs, ask them questions about what they're doing, what they're using it for, get them to talk about themselves. It really makes them feel comfortable, as well as myself, the salesperson, too."
