One selling point for clothing rental services is sustainability and rejection of excessive consumption -- themes that resonate for their clientele. Remember when you bought an expensive evening gown for an event, only to ever wear it once or twice? Or picked up a trendy T-shirt, only to leave it gathering dust in the closet?
Just a decade ago, clothing rentals were for special occasions. But the business has since transformed and is raking in $1 billion in sales worldwide, according to a study published in April by business consulting firm Grand View Research. For $89 a month, a subscriber can get four pieces at a time from the company, now valued at $1 billion. RTR also offers an unlimited subscription for $159 a month.
"So you tend to buy things that are more basic colors, not wanting to spend money on something that might be too trendy that you might only wear for one or two seasons. Here, you can wear the trendy things and even if you wear them one time, then it doesn't matter." "I think people like the idea of buying less fast fashion, things that you buy and are good enough quality to wear for one season," says Jackson.According to several industry sources, most pieces are used about 15 times before they are taken out of rotation.