Would You Rent Someone Else’s Clothes?

According to a recent story from Vox, the ever-expanding sharing economy could set about a radical shift in how we obtain clothing in the near future. Tl/dr; people are gonna rent shit from each other instead of buying it.

Currently, the “big fish in the fashion rental economy is Rent the Runway, the huge startup that’s raised more than $400 million in funding and has grown to 9 million members,” Vox said. “But more companies are jumping into the space and expanding the parameters of what [it] can look like.”

One of those companies is Tulerie, which “allows users to rent clothing, shoes, and accessories to one another, with the app acting as a medium for borrowers and lenders.”

The service itself is free, but prospective users have to be vetted in order to use it and the borrowers assume an insane amount of liability — 200 percent of the retail value of whatever is on loan — while paying roughly five percent of retail value for a period of four days. Tulerie also keeps its brand list fairly exclusive – think Gucci, Celine, Prada, Louis Vuitton, Reformation, etc.

As one research firm said, ”renting in fashion is poised for growth since shoppers today want an ‘ever-changing, on-trend wardrobe,” while prioritizing experiences over possessions. And Tulerie – and apps like it – can provide both.

And just in case you’re feeling skeptical (Uber had skeptics too, and they’re all milling around the country’s last Blockbuster if you want to go hang out with them), the story said that “even traditional retailers are trying to figure out ways to get involved with fashion rentals, especially in the ever-struggling mall brand category.”

(Apparently, even DSW is “[looking] into shoe rentals,” the story said, but also noted that “it hasn’t shared how it plans to deal with hygiene issues,” which seems like an important piece.)

You can read more about it at Vox.

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