19 examples of cross-selling by fashion & apparel brands

We’ve already written about some of the best examples of cross-selling from beauty brands like L’Occitane, Dollar Shave Club, and Boots. Now, it’s time to look at examples from the fashion & apparel world.

What is cross-selling to fashion brands?

Cross-selling is recommending supplementary products or services based on a customer’s interests. For example, if I’ve just placed a pair of shoes in my cart, a fashion brand could use this signal to recommend socks. They could recommend products typically bought with my boots if they're even more intelligent.

Some brands confuse cross-selling with upselling.

Upselling refers to encouraging customers to buy a premium version of something they’re interested in. It’s more prevalent in verticals like consumer electronics, where something like a computer can be upgraded with extra features.

Why is cross-selling important to fashion brands?

Cross-selling is huge in the fashion industry. Some sites have tens of thousands of products with a limited shelf life. Brands are under pressure to help customers explore their sites and add more products to their carts to enhance the customer experience. Otherwise, they risk hoarding warehouses full of end-of-line items.

Here are some ways of cross-selling in the fashion & apparel world to improve eCommerce and online shopping experiences:

• “Complete the look”: Recommend a top to someone with the matching bottom in their cart.
• “Frequently bought with”: Use your data to push products that tend to be bought with the customer’s cart.
• “New arrivals”: No data to work off? Push new arrivals in all cases.

There are so many variations of cross-selling tactics in retail. You might spot some new ones in our rundown of cross-selling examples from fashion brands. We’ve searched, browsed, and clicked, and these are the winners.

‍#1 – ASOS – Non-invasive recommendations

Add a product to your cart at ASOS and see a virtual rack of similar items.

We’ve got products from the same brand and others that have the same style. This almost doubles as a cross-selling and straight conversion play. I can add more to my cart or replace my order with something even better. 

‍#2 – Nike – “Complete the look” on another level

We headed onto Nike, added a hoodie to our cart, and saw one of the best examples of “complete the look” we’ve seen.

We expected to get a recommendation for the matching pair of joggers. Instead, we get those joggers along with four outfit suggestions. What can we say – they’re just doing it better?

‍#3 – Adidas – Utilizing the confirmation 

Brands display an ‘added to bag’ confirmation in many different ways. Some prefer a subtle approach, but Adidas goes big with an overlay. This allows the brand to recommend socks to go with my running shoes.

If we were to tweak this, we’d showcase a few running socks to align with the product we’re viewing. But we love the layout as it is.

#4 – Asics – Value for money

Here’s something different. At Asics, when you look at running tops, you see an offer for ‘Buy Running Shoes, Get 20% off on Apparel’.

Running shoes are the most expensive items at Asics. If we were looking into buying a new piece of clothing, we might now consider making a much bigger order.

#5 – Patagonia – Goes great with

Recommending items from the same collection is cross-selling 101. Patagonia pushes waterproof trousers when customers head to the checkout with a waterproof jacket.

The first two are from the same collection as the jacket. It’s an important detail, as they have the exact technical specifications. 

‍#6 – Lulu Lemon – Low-value recommendations

Luxury activewear brand Lulu Lemon does cross-selling a little differently. It could have easily recommended a matching top for the bottoms I’m checking out with. Instead, we have accessories.

It’s a brilliant play. Imagine customers entering the checkout and seeing that they don’t qualify for free shipping. Accessories provide a way of pushing the cart value to help them get there.

#7 – Charles Tyrwhitt – Customers also bought

“Customers also bought“ is one of our favorite cross-selling tactics. Formalwear specialist Charles Tyrwhitt recommends sensible pairings for my shirt alongside the three golden words. If the retailer’s data is in order, these products will have the best chance of being added to the cart.

#8 – Ralph Lauren – The model’s outfit

We saw a “complete the look” cross-sell from Ralph Lauren on our travels.

We’re mainly focused on how Ralph Lauren pushes the other items the model wears.

This is a sophisticated touch. It also simplifies customers' lives by saving them the task of trawling through pages to find the other items. 

#9 – H&M – Styled and bought with

As an affordable fashion retailer, H&M is interested in helping customers build orders that qualify for free shipping. This may be why we get two recommendations to cover all the bases.

The “style with” recommendations align with the product we’re viewing. If the customer doesn’t want an outfit, there are other options. 

#10 – Carhartt WIP – Keep it simple

Do not be fooled into thinking customers need reels and reels of supplementary products. Carhartt serves just three items based on what we’ve added to the cart.

As these products are what similar customers viewed, we gather there’s some robust data behind the suggestions. 

#11 – Sweaty Betty – Assess your options

We add a top to our cart at activewear brand Sweaty Betty and head to the checkout. It’s not enough for free or express shipping, so we get the cost of those services plus some recommendations to help us get them for free.

Very few fashion & apparel provide such an impressive overview of options. With this layout, there is no doubt about all the different paths we can take.

#12 – Reebok – Recently viewed

Reebok goes super subtle by reminding us of all the items we viewed before reaching the checkout.

The brand avoids pushy sales tactics. Instead, we are reminded of things that could help us qualify for free shipping.

#13 – Dr Martens – Just what we needed

Dr Martens is a globally recognized footwear brand. Customers love its signature range of leather boots, which require extra measures to preserve their quality. We add a pair to the cart and see a recommendation for a protector.

The logic is that if you’re already buying an expensive pair of boots, you’ve probably researched what you’re buying and don’t need to see other options. The supplementary product isn’t high-value but is the right thing to promote.

#14 – Kay Jewelers – More like this

We ventured into the accessory world to find a genuinely dynamic and personalized set of recommendations from Kay Jewelers. When you browse a product, you get a line of similar items beneath it.

Buying jewelry online can be tricky. You can look at similar options in a physical store based on your taste. We think Kay is going for that.  

#15 – Champion – Free delivery drive

Who said you need to recommend a product to cross-sell a customer?

Champion requires customers to spend a certain amount to receive free shipping. Telling us how much extra we need to spend invites us to return to the site and add a product.

#16 – Columbia – An array of options

Columbia gives a fairly basic overview of products similar to the one we’re viewing. However, it’s the little touches that make this stand out.

We had a multi-angled view, and the fleeces were available in a choice of color. You can explore these items briefly before heading to their product page.

#17 – Nasty Gal – Offer Wallet

We might be biased, but this Offer Wallet - set up by RevLifter - is a cross-selling dream. Even without adding a product to the cart, we get many ideas for exploring collections.

#18 – Man Utd – Accurate recommendations

Now for something different. We wanted to see whether a unique apparel retailer had their recommendations down to a tee. The prices are shown, so on heading to soccer club Man Utd’s online store, we added a kids’ jersey to the cart. Notice the size of the football recommended to us—the smallest available, which shows just how relevant these are.

#19 – Rip Curl – Offer banner

The checkout is the final chance to cross-sell the customer. Surf brand Rip Curl takes full advantage of this by using a dynamic banner to push its best offers.

We love how Rip Curl is going for it by highlighting great deals rather than just products. We bet it works.

#20 BONUS – Nordstrom – Outfit ideas

You thought you were getting 19... But here's an extra one for you!

Nordstrom presents collections of items to make the perfect outfit for extra inspiration. The prices are shown to see if your favorite is within your budget.