How to know what to wear

When Gabi Rubin wanted a dress for a New Year party she couldn't bear to battle against the crowds of shoppers.

Instead she booked an appointment with a personal shopper, sat down with a cup of tea and let the clothes be brought to her.

"The great thing is the personal shopper service is free," says Gabi, aged 38 from Stourbridge.

"I have been using the service at Debenhams in the Merry Hill Centre to find some good outfits for over Christmas.

"When you go shopping you can get stuck with the same old stuff and I have been trying to find a variety of items to brighten up my wardrobe."

Jody Hollis, 29, from Stourbridge and Amy Baulchin, 28, from Kingswinford are both personal shoppers at Debenhams.

"We do have a lot of customers using the service and they are mainly looking for outfits for weddings or special occasions," says Amy

"They can be aged 18 to 80 years old - it doesn't matter. We know all the ranges in the store so we can go straight to the right department and find the best thing for the customer.

"We do mainly cater for women but we do men's appointments and the personal shopper service is excellent for men.

"Men often want a quick solution, and whereas women go shopping throughout the year men do bulk shopping twice or maybe three times a year and they don't want any hassle.

"Everyone knows what it is like when you have 10 items and you go into the dressing room and nothing fits - you go home miserable. Well the personal shopper service gets rid of that."

Jody added: "For Gabi's first dress we chose a black limited edition dress from Julien McDonald priced at £250.

"There are only 200 of these dresses in the country, which is good if people don't want to turn up at a party and find they are wearing the same outfit as another guest.

"The second outfit is a green dress from Red Herring costing £35. This dress can be worn for a range of occasions and it is at a price to suit most pockets."

Gabi says she found it difficult to choose between the two outfits.

She says: "I like both the dresses and if I was going to a flashy night out I would go for the black dress but the other dress is more versatile and can be worn to lots of different events.

"I wouldn't necessarily have gone for either dress if I had just seen them on the hangers but as soon as I tried them on I loved them."

Amy says customers can be filled with confidence when they find something that suits them.

"It is usually the items that a customer thinks they can't wear which will suit them the most," she says.

"At the end of the day we are a service, we don't charge and we are not commission based.

"We spend up to two hours with someone, do a customer profile and go through what their needs are, their sizes and their concerns.

"They may be conscious of their hips or their stomach so we make sure we find something to flatter their shape.

"We go through a process called Colour, Style and Fit to find out what will suit them. We are not trying to change them because it is all about personal style.

"Sizes range from six to 22 and there is also a petite range."

Jody says the service has been in the store since it opened 12 years ago.

"When people first use the service they are a bit scared because they think we will be like Trinny and Susannah and rip them to shreds.

"We will be honest and tell them if something doesn't suit them but we aren't going to point out all their lumps and bumps.

"People learn to trust us and they relax and enjoy the experience. If someone is considering revamping their wardrobe in the New Year we recommend they come to us.

"We can get them a range of wearable clothes they will put on more than once and that suit their lifestyle and their budget.

"People find themselves going to the same shop or the same department and have a wardrobe full of clothes, which all look the same.

"But because this is a one-on-one service our time is totally devoted to them and we will find items that they may not have considered.

"We will also find them the right underwear, shoes, bag and jewellery to go with their outfit."

To contact the personal shoppers at Debenhams call 01384 418532.