All the benefits of fashion rental

Renting fashion is an exciting opportunity for both consumers and brands

The fashion industry is a multibillion-dollar business, and it keeps growing each year. However, the traditional way of consuming fashion has some drawbacks: it's expensive, it has a heavy environmental impact, and it can be difficult to keep up with the latest trends. In such a context fashion rental is becoming more and more so popular.

What is fashion renting?

Fashion renting is a peer-to-peer fashion-sharing service, where users can rent fashion items from other users or brands. It's usually done through an online platform or app, and it works in a similar way to subscription services: people often pay a monthly fee that gives them access to a library of fashion items. These fashion items are either sent directly to them or available for pickup in a fashion store. Customers can use them for as long as they want and then return them when finished.

There are already numerous active fashion renting services on the market, such as Rent the Runway or Le Tote. Some of them, like Nuuly, are both renting and reselling platforms. All these companies offer fashion rentals for a wide selection of items, including dresses, tops, accessories, and more.

Benefits of fashion renting

One of the positive sides of fashion renting is that it benefits everyone involved: consumers, companies and even the planet!

1) Benefits for Consumers: 

Renting offers consumers a convenient and cost-effective way to get access to designer items, luxury fashion and latest trend without breaking the bank. It also allows them to experiment with different fashion styles without having to commit financially. All of this is particularly advantageous when they are looking for a dress for special occasions, which they would otherwise buy to use only once and then abandon in the closet or throw away. So, consumers not only have an economic benefit but also become more sustainable as they can rent fashion items and return them after they're done, thus reducing clothing waste.

2) Benefits for Companies: 

By offering access to stylish fashion items at a fraction of the cost, fashion brands can increase their customer base, brand visibility and even their sales without increasing prices. Plus, companies can reduce their inventory costs -since they don't need to produce a large number of items at once - and still offer a wide selection of them. Obviously, having to produce less, the ecological footprint and waste production are also reduced. This means that the brand image improves and that companies are able to penetrate more easily that part of the market populated by consumers who are particularly sensitive to the issue of sustainability.

It also helps to capture new data about customer preferences and trends in the fashion industry.

3) Benefits for the Planet: 

Considering what we have said, it is clear that renting is one of the best ways to reduce the environmental impact of fashion. By reusing clothes, we can see a reduction in damage caused by production processes in terms of waste, dispersion of pollutants, consumption of new resources, and greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, renting pushes companies to become more responsible for the end of the product production cycle, by considering further sustainable practices such as recycling, reuse, and reselling.

Who benefits from fashion renting?

How your company can join the fashion renting trend

There are a few elements that you need to take into consideration when approaching renting. Let's see them.

1) Your items:

• Design fashion items focusing on fashion trends that are likely to remain for longer than a few weeks or months: this will ensure that the items are rented multiple times. 
• Choose sustainable materials such as organic cotton, hemp, recycled materials, etc. This will make fashion renting more appealing to sustainable fashion consumers. 
• Make sure used items are well-maintained so they can be reused multiple times, extending their lifetime and getting more value out of them. 
• Make sure items are properly cleaned and disinfected between rentals: this is essential to follow health and safety regulations. 
• Establish a clear returns policy: this will help fashion renters understand the terms and conditions of fashion renting and make them more likely to rent items from you in the future. 

2) Your market:

• Research your target audience and understand their needs: fashion rental is becoming increasingly popular with fashion-conscious consumers, so it's important to know what they are looking for.
• Establish partnerships with fashion rental companies that offer fashion items from various fashion brands: this will give you access to a larger variety of fashion items and help you reach more customers.
• Offer incentives to encourage customers to rent fashion items from you again and again: this could include discounts, loyalty programs or free fashion items.

3) Your tools:

• Create an easy-to-use online platform or choose an existing one that fits your need: for example, make sure fashion items are easy to search for on the platform so that customers can find what they need. 
• Invest in technology that can track fashion items, giving each of them a unique ID number, so you know where they are at all times: this will help ensure fashion items are returned on time and in good condition. 
• Use data to track fashion items’ performance: this will help you determine which fashion items are most popular and help you create a better fashion rental offer. 
• Invest in inventory tracking software that will help you manage fashion items: this will make it easier for you to keep track of fashion items and make sure fashion items are always in stock. 
• Use customer feedback to improve fashion renting services: this will help you determine what fashion renters are looking for and help you create a better fashion rental offer. 
• Give customers a way to access information about what they are renting: this could include pictures, information about size and materials, but also information about the raw materials, the supply chain, and the second life of the products. You can do it through QR codes on your website or smart labels on the products.
• Implement an authentication method: this will help you ensure your fashion items are genuine and protect fashion renters from counterfeits. 
• Create a fashion rental app: this will make fashion renting more convenient for renters as it can be accessed anytime and anywhere. 
• Offer an online fashion styling service: this could include personalised fashion advice or recommendations tailored to individual needs.
• Establish a secure payment system so customers can pay for fashion rentals quickly and securely. 
• Offer customer service in case of any problems during the fashion rental process.

4)  Your pricing:

• Set competitive prices that will attract fashion renters and keep them coming back for more fashion items. 
• Offer discounts or loyalty programs that will make fashion renting even more attractive and profitable for your company. 
• Offer fashion items at various price points, so they can be accessible to different types of customers.
• Create fashion rental packages for different occasions and budgets: this will make fashion renting even more appealing to fashion renters.

5) Your logistics:

• Make sure you have a reliable delivery service that is able to deliver fashion items in perfect condition and on time.
• Establish a return process that is easy and efficient, so fashion items can be returned quickly and with minimal effort.
• Determine the rental period: make sure fashion items are returned in time and that they are not rented out for too long (or short).

6) Your marketing: 

• Emphasise the importance of fashion rental as part of your sustainable fashion strategy: this will make renting more attractive to sustainable fashion-conscious customers. 
• Make sure to showcase items in an appealing way on your website or social media.
• Invest in fashion-renting influencers who can promote your items to their followers, helping you reach a wider audience. 
• Invest in advertising strategies that will promote fashion rental and reach fashion-conscious consumers: this could include influencer campaigns, digital advertising and social media marketing. 

Elements to take in consideration:

How Certilogo can help your company

Certilogo is a fashion authentication and product engagement platform that can help you protect your items from counterfeits and increase fashion rental trust. It is a secure, verifiable system that allows fashion renters to check if the item they are renting is authentic or not, and helps reduce the burdensome manual process of authenticating returned items, required to identify cases where consumers return counterfeit goods in exchange for genuine articles.

Certilogo also provides product traceability features so renters can have access to detailed information about the raw materials, production process and the fashion item’s second life. 

Additionally, you can take advantage of insights and analytics that will help you optimise your rental strategies. 

Finally, Certilogo offers customer service in case of any problems during the fashion rental process.

If you want to share with us your fashion rental project, please contact us.