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The GW Hatchet

AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904

The GW Hatchet

Serving the GW Community since 1904

The GW Hatchet

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Students create app to post outfits, get fashion advice

Sarah+Shavin%2C+a+senior+majoring+in+business+administration%2C+and+Ryan+Steed%2C+a+sophomore+majoring+in+computer+science+and+economics%2C+started+an+app+called+Thisfits.
Sarah Shavin, a senior majoring in business administration, and Ryan Steed, a sophomore majoring in computer science and economics, started an app called Thisfits.

Two students developed an app to help with the dreaded task of deciding what to wear.

The app, called Thisfits, is a social network focused on style that allows users to post photos of their outfits on channels, which highlight looks for specific events or environments. The app’s creators said the platform allows users to document their outfits, get feedback and inspiration, or simply “humble bragging” about a great look.

Sarah Shavin, a senior majoring in business administration and the app’s co-founder, said she created the app to help users curate their own personal style, but it can also help people navigate what to wear in new situations like internships or networking events.

“I think fashion is so expansive that you could do so much if you have the right size user base in a virtual environment,” Shavin said.

The image-heavy app contains different sections, including a profile to share your own style and a discover section where users can explore channels, which are similar to hashtags and let you look at a particular trend or topic. Inside each channel, you’ll find a collage of looks on an online mood board for your style inspiration – from seasonal trends and patterns from other eras.

“It’s for feedback, inspiration and humble bragging,” Shavin said.

While pitching the idea for Thisfits at a demonstration last year at the GW Innovation Center, Shavin met another student, Ryan Steed, who joined on to develop the app’s framework.

Steed, a sophomore majoring in computer science and economics, said Thisfits is the first mobile application he has created, even though he had little expertise in the fashion world.

“How do you learn more about fashion when you’re not really into it, how do you get to know what’s out there and hear more of the conversation?” Steed said. “That’s a great way to get connected and to see what the environment is like.”

[gwh_image id=”1072178″ credit=”Photo Illustration by Graeme Sloan | Contributing Photo Editor” align=”none” size=”embedded-img”]Thisfits is an app that allows users to post outfits and get fashion advice.,[/gwh_image]

Since meeting more than a year ago, Shavin and Steed, along with four other GW students, have worked through three iterations of Thisfits, which is now in its third round of beta testing.

About 100 users, comprised of fellow students and friends, are currently trial testing the app, and with each new version, the developers added new features, like a user profile page, and worked out pesky interface glitches.

“The idea is that we can put features out there, change things up really quickly and then have a close group of beta users that we can communicate with and get feedback from,” Steed said. “If we do that enough times, we’ll have the perfect product.”

Shavin and Steed said “the dream” is to officially launch the app by the beginning of next year. Shavin said they want the app to be “high-functioning” before its release and that means removing all the little software issues.

Among the active users of Thisfits are several students, who said the app fills a gap in online expression with personalized style profiles.

Katie Hopkins, a junior majoring in international affairs, said she received an email about beta testing Thisfits, which prompted her to download the app and test it out. Hopkins said watching other people’s adventurous fashion choices through the app has made her want to take more of a risk when it comes to her own style.

“I’ve been hoarding this cheetah print jacket and honestly, until I got onto Thisfits and saw other people wearing animal print in public, I was almost ashamed to wear it,” Hopkins said. “But now, I’m inspired.”

Francesca Morgano, a sophomore majoring in international affairs, said she found out about Thisfits through the GW Fashion Business Association. Morgano said she started off posting mirror selfies on the app to document her daily outfits, but the app has grown useful for figuring out what to wear to her internship.

“I didn’t even know I needed this kind of outlet,” Morgano said.

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