In the midst of an explosion of information and choice, are consumers missing out on surprise? The team behind Hipstery, a web store for mystery t-shirts, thinks they are. Which is why there are no t-shirt designs to choose from on Hipestry's site. Instead, customers select a size, pay EUR 17 (plus shipping) and answer a series of questions about themselves. The Hipstery's 'style scientists' run the responses to this quiz through their 'innovative style algorithm'—both concepts which the site's irreverent tone would lead us to interpret loosely—to select the right t-shirt from their exclusive range of designs, many of which are out-of-print shirts from small suppliers.

Leipzig-based Hipstery's openly opaque business model latches onto an anti-trend noted by our sister-site trendwatching in last month's briefing about transparency. While most companies are providing ever more choice and ever more information, a gap is opening for businesses who can relieve consumers of the burden of decision. Acknowledging that this is a big responsibility to hand over, Hipstery will replace any t-shirts that customers don't like, with the option of a refund if they're wrong the second time. Sometimes a lack of choice is a good thing, especially if used to surprise and delight consumers. It's a theme creative entrepreneurs should have fun exploring. (Related: Soft drinks for the undecided — Kashiwa Mystery Café.)

Website: www.hipstery.com
Contact: www.hipstery.com/contact

Spotted by: Andreas Milles

It's no secret that skin care products become less effective and even unhygienic with age, yet few companies emphasize the freshness of their merchandise. Los Angeles-based Odacité, however, places manufacturing dates at the forefront of its business, producing freshly-made organic skin care products and leaving out preservatives. Stating that ‘freshness is the key to effectiveness’, Odacité marks each product with a 'Freshiency Date', showing the month of manufacture and the month after which the product will start to degrade.

Going against the common practice of letting tubes and jars sit on store shelves, Odacité products are only sold online and made in small batches so they can be shipped to customers immediately. Customers are advised to keep their products in the fridge to help preserve them. To really hit home the brand's point of difference, it even sells a branded mini-fridge. The company claims that there are serious health benefits to its methods, since it can make moisturizers, cleansers, eye creams, etc with as few chemicals as possible. Prices start at USD 45 for a jojoba exfoliant and Odacité ships to France, the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Canada and the US.

Odacité isn't the first skin care company to place an increased emphasis on freshness; it resembles a high-end version of Lush, which also manufactures in small batches but sells its products at its own stores around the world. Skin care and cosmetics are a multi-billion dollar industry, so there's plenty of room for targeting carefully defined—and carefully marketed—niches. (Related: Expiration date stickers for cosmetics — Niche-niche skin care — Lush brings back discontinued products on demand.)

Website: www.odacite.com
Contact: contact@odacite.com 

Spotted by: Romain Gallard

Amidst thousands of online clothing retailers, Market Publique has found its niche. Based in Brooklyn, it aims to attract premium sellers and buyers of vintage fashion. Goods are sold both through auction sales (eBay-style) and fixed prices. Potential sellers fill out a brief application form before joining. Besides selecting those that offer great vintage clothing, Market Publique also ensures they possess necessary skills such as correctly taking measurements. Once a seller is accepted, there's a USD 0.25 charge per listed item, plus a 5% commission fee for each sale.

Buyers and sellers receive monthly itemised bills from Market Publique, making it easier to keep track of purchases and sales. Sellers also benefit from the site’s active blog and promotion through advertising in print and on the web. Currently, only women's clothes and accessories are on offer, but men's items and housewares will follow soon.

By focusing on one niche and creating an appealing storefront for carefully selected vendors, Market Publique takes the standard online marketplace model and makes it more attractive and reliable for both buyers and sellers. (Related: Online marketplace focuses on mid-century design.)

Website: www.marketpublique.com

Spotted by: Bonnie Sandy

It's been almost three years since we wrote about Denim Therapy's jeans-doctoring service, and now the company has added a new offering to its line: a special service that adjusts favourite jeans for pregnant bellies—and then, post-baby, back again.

Pregnant mothers simply send New York-based Denim Therapy their favourite jeans. Denim Therapy then inserts expandable side inseams in the pants that will move and grow as the woman's belly expands. Perhaps even better, however, is that once the baby is born and the mother has brought herself back to her pre-baby figure, Denim Therapy will restore those jeans back to their original form. As the company puts it, "Why spend money on a new pair of maternity jeans when you can feel sexy and comfortable in your own favourite jeans. And voila, you're also doing your part of being environmentally conscious." Pricing on the service is USD 60 per pair.

More than 4 million babies are born in the United States alone each year, and that translates into a whole lot of jeans in need of modification along the way. Crafty minipreneurs: time to stock up on expandable fabric for a similar service of your own...?

Website: www.denimtherapy.com/maternity-jeans/
Contact: info@denimtherapy.com

Spotted by: Cecilia Biemann

We've covered a few examples of businesses that allow consumers to buy, sell, rent and trade used clothing, including OURthreads and Closet Infinite. Providing a slightly different twist on the notion, however, is thredUP, which uses a Netflix-like model with prepaid envelopes to help users swap the clothes they don't wear for some they will.

Currently focusing just on shirts, thredUP is free to join. Users begin by setting up a virtual closet to keep track of the clothes they'd like to exchange, using descriptions of the brands, sizes, colours and patterns—no photos are required. Users also tell thredUP what they'd like to get in exchange, including the brands, sizes and styles they prefer. Next, members purchase prepaid envelopes—a special offer currently has a package of three half-priced at USD 12.50. thredUP then looks for good matches in the virtual closets of other members to find items that might be suitable. It sends them one such item for each envelope they've purchased, along with an address to send one of their own items to. The result, as the site puts it: "out with old-to-you, in with new-to-you." If the recipient of an item likes it, they simply keep it; otherwise, they list it as an item they'd like to trade. Members can assign each other "stylie" points as tokens of appreciation for particularly nice items received, and those are redeemable for free stuff on thredUP along with qualifying them for special promotions.

Billed as "a refresh button for your closet," Massachusetts-based thredUP plans eventually to expand beyond just shirts to include all clothing items, including kids' clothes. It also plans to sell targeted advertising and to begin offering premium services for better matching precision, according to a report on Vator.tv. In the meantime, thredUP already ties in nicely with the sellsumer trend, giving recession-weary consumers a way to make the most of what they have. One to try out—or get involved in? (Related: IKEA organizes furniture swap — Amazon trades gift cards for used video games.)

Website: www.thredup.com
Contact: support@thredup.com

Spotted by: Treehugger