Bloomberg recently reported about the developing partnership between Selfridges and HURR, reaching younger shoppers by offering fashion rental.
Within the current turmoil of Retail in the UK, Brands are realising that younger and ecologically-minded customers have been wanting more than ever to experience luxury fashion on a rental basis, rather than outright purchases – Consumers growing an appetite for the rental industry coupled with growing consumer concern over the ecological impact of fast fashion means many retailers are scrambling to tap into surging demand for renting and buying secondhand items.
The coronavirus has altered the “cycle of consumption in a way we could never have predicted,” Managing Director Anne Pitcher said. As a result, she said, Selfridges has to “change how shopping is done.”
Selfridges is best known for its giant shopping emporium on London’s Oxford Street but also has stores in Birmingham and Manchester and an online division.
Selfridges also stated on their website “Clothing rental platform Hurr Collective has landed IRL at Selfridges Oxford Street, London… renting your outfit is the fashionable way forward, and this goes hand-in-hand with a more sustainable way to shop”.
The purpose and surge in demand for fashion rental runs parallel with the emerging need for luxury watch rental. All recent research into millennials’ buying habits and behaviours, luxury watch trends and even the opinions of Luxury Brands are shifting towards a watch market with consumptive diversity, including rental as a service offering.
The only barrier that remains is bringing the right product offering to the market. As we touched on this before, there is nothing out there that provides a watch rental service that is quick, cheap and easy to use. Nor is there a service that has no strings attached without huge deposits and hidden fees and terms.
