Kirkland-based Fitcode announces $1.8 million in funding

Women who shop online now have a better way to find their best denim fit thanks to Kirkland-based Fitcode, a new fashion technology company. At the core of the concept, Fitcode is shifting the industry’s focus from size to fit.

Women who shop online now have a better way to find their best denim fit thanks to Kirkland-based Fitcode, a new fashion technology company. At the core of the concept, Fitcode is shifting the industry’s focus from size to fit. Shoppers have complimentary access to the Fitcode digital service across their devices. To get started, a woman takes a short, four-question quiz that matches her with one of nine different Fitcodes based on her unique body type. Once her Fitcode is identified, she can browse a curated selection of denim from supported brands, and shop through the Fitcode site, or directly at a favorite retailer’s site.

The company announced $1.8 million in Series A funding from investment firm, Harvey Partners. The funding will be used to scale operations, build a native mobile app and enhance user experience by adding more denim brands. Additionally, Fitcode will cultivate a partnership program with retailers.

“For many women, the experience of online shopping is a point of frustration with no standard sizing across brands,” said founder of Fitcode amd CEO Rian Buckley. “Fitcode removes the guesswork from denim shopping to create a win-win for digital shoppers and retailers. We’re excited to help women find denim they love and, reduce costly returns for brands and retailers.”

The idea for Fitcode was born when Buckley was modeling for big brands and retailers. She was struck by the amount of pinning, altering and Photoshop required to make clothing look good during fashion shoots. Simultaneously, she observed many retailers complaining about the high cost of customer returns.

Buckley realized not only was there a very real disconnect between the images shoppers saw online and the actual product a consumer purchases, but there are also no standardized measurements across brands (especially true for denim), which makes for a frustrating guessing game for online shoppers. By shifting the focus from size to fit, she found consumers could shop online with confidence and find jeans that not only fit, but flatter their unique body shape.

“After seeing the opportunity, we wanted to get involved as early as possible because Fitcode is one of the few young technology companies with a woman in leadership,” said Harvey Partners founder and CEO Brett Campbell. “Fitcode is easy to use yet it is a sophisticated technology and solving a real problem in online retail. Everything about this investment made sense.”