For as long as I can remember my money has been spent on fashion. From the velour snakeskin two-piece of my Spice Girls loving youth, to the glitter embellished butterfly split sleeve Tammy top that I wore to the school disco, it was my first love, my Mr. Big. The key driver for all of my first jobs was to be able to buy the clothes that I wanted, whether it was the Von Dutch caps of my teens to the teeny tiny Topshop hot pants that I lived in all through my uni years- IYKYK. But just like my Uni years, the majority of those purchases were fast, loose and fancy free, often forgotten as quickly as they arrived.
But then came rental. The first time I heard about Hurr, It was a lightbulb moment- suddenly all of the things I’d coveted in magazines for years felt within reach. Items that I’d lusted over were within my budget to rent, and items that I already owned could make me some money when I wasn’t wearing them. I listed my first two Rixo dresses; an iconic black velvet embroidered mini (that’s been rented over 20 times now), and a green and pink backless floral beauty that I’d worn as a bridesmaid. Within days the bookings came in.
For the first time ever, I could see that my love of fashion was a genuine opportunity for financial empowerment, in a way that had never felt accessible to me before. I started to carefully reinvest the money that I made, and crucially, I considered any purchases I made in a way that I’d never done. Do I really need this? Will I wear it multiple times? Will others want to wear it too? Do I love it more than anything similar I already own, and is it different enough? If it doesn’t tick all of these boxes but the burning desire to wear it even once is still there, rental is the answer. And while it may seem extreme to go through this checklist initially, for a recovering fast fashion shopaholic to suddenly stop and think like this was a revelation.
It’s no secret that the way we shop and experience fashion and shopping now is very different to what it was. And while the high street may be dead (RIP my old friend), the opportunities for a more sustainable and financially beneficial future are ripe for the taking. It’s predicted that 50 million single wear items will be purchased this summer, and as a former fast fashion offender, I can assure you, it’s never too late to make a change. Resale, renting, and lending are all absolutely essential, and if done responsibly and thoughtfully, there is no reason why it cannot result in a truly impactful change to our finances and our planet.
What this looks like is different for all of us. I’d dreamt of having a boutique as a kid, but I had never imagined that the carefully selected and treasured items within my wardrobe would become it. That the beloved pieces I owned would be worn by myself, my friends, and thousands of other amazing women that I’d never met too. There is profound joy in someone telling you that you helped them to feel the best that they’ve felt in years. And seeing someone style something that you own in a totally different, exciting, and inspiring way, really does strengthen the desire to wear your items even more- just like a hot girl making eyes at your partner at a party, there’s nothing like a bit of good old fashioned jealousy to reawaken your love affair with your long term pieces.
While for me two items have evolved into a career, the beauty of the changing rental and resale landscape means that we are free to make it work in a way that is entirely individual to each of us. Whether it’s your first rental, your first item purchased preloved, or your first booking as a lender, the smallest changes in habit are often what lead to the greatest impact. And the very best way to start the process of breaking the fast fashion cycle is by starting with what you already have.
When it comes to listing your wardrobe with Hurr, the process couldn’t be easier. Simply upload some product images and any great pics of you wearing it, along with a brief description and any key fit notes for potential renters to understand the sizing. When you get a booking, good customer service is crucial- rental allows a truly personalised experience so take advantage of this. Summer favourites like Zimmermann, Farm Rio, Rixo and Self Portrait are all great places to start, with timeless designs and excellent quality, making them great wardrobe classics and rental staples. Like with any other business, monitoring and analysing your results is key. That’s why along with fellow lender Jess Templeton, we’ve created our Lender Toolkits- easily digestible handbooks to intro you to the world of renting and lending. The same spreadsheets that we use to run our businesses are available to purchase, offering not only the ability to track your wardrobe and your earnings, but also to plan your weekly rentals, and analyse profit and loss according to both financial and tax years.
My wardrobe is now not just my passion, it’s my business and my full time job. The hours spent researching and carefully curating have been long but worth it, and I’m so proud that over 2500 rentals later, my renters are still coming back. Being a lender allows me to offer a truly bespoke service- personal shopping and styling all built into a sustainable and more cost effective way to feel amazing in luxury fashion (sans any ‘God I shouldn’t have bought that’) guilt. The only thing left to say is, what are you waiting for?
Kelly Keogh, @kelsrentalwardrobe
