I agree 100% with this sentiment. fab.com, one kings lane, gilt.com etc. I don't know if I want to join your site and/or be a customer until after I've had a chance to see what you have to offer. I did register with one kings lane but haven't found much of anything I would actually buy. Then I got their daily marketing email which I didn't want and became even less likely to be a customer.
I don't understand why increasing the barriers to potential customers is in fashion right now with shopping sites. Anyone can sign up, they aren't exactly exclusive clubs.
We're doing something a bit different here where we actually do need your info to give you a good experience. We're creating a style/fit profile for you and providing a more personalized experience. However, as I mention in a comment above, the reason everybody does this is because it works better, so really you're just a victim of human nature.
If you've got the numbers to show that this sort of thing leads to more active and involved users then I can't really argue against it but you should stop pretending that this is the only way you could possibly give a good first experience. Off the top of my head it seems you could have an awesome first experience by starting with a bare minimum style quiz. I haven't seen what you have so far but odds are you wouldn't need the entire quiz you currently use up front. From that quiz you can present a page with a handful of selections that would fit the user's responses, giving them a rough view of what they can expect. From there you can prompt the user to properly sign up and take the full signup.
I have no idea what the numbers would look like, but it would certainly provide a pleasing no-registration initial experience.
Having put an email address into your landing page, it doesn't appear you've actually launched so I couldn't evaluate how necessary it is on my own of course and will have to take your word for it.
As for the other sites... this process might increase conversions up front but for me at least it causes fatigue. I'm much less likely to register at another site, or deal with any other product that requires registration before I can see any of the products based on my current experience.
I don't understand why increasing the barriers to potential customers is in fashion right now with shopping sites. Anyone can sign up, they aren't exactly exclusive clubs.