Something borrowed, something new
Lola Gown offers a dress renting service for the fashion-forward woman who embraces style with sustainability, writes
THE small showroom has racks of evening wear neatly displayed in a corner. Even from a distance, one can see the varied styles, colours and embellishments that mark the dresses that Lola Gown has to offer. There are dresses in a multitude of shades, from sunflower yellow to sizzling red and in designs that celebrate every woman’s choice — from flirty and feminine to downright, all out sexy. Embellishments such as sequins, beads, lace and feathers add just the right amount of “bling” to each design.
It’s hard to imagine any woman not wanting to have one of these ensembles in her wardrobe. And she can, for a price and for a limited period of time, for Lola Gown is a dress rental service for women looking for a suitable gown for formal events or special occasions.
The brainchild of Law Na Na, a blogger and fashion enthusiast, this service pretty much takes away the dilemma of hunting for “that perfect dress”, a common chal
lenge for most women whenever they need to look their best for an occasion. Law, a Sarawakian and her business partner and close friend, Isabelle Lee, decided to start the dress rental service when they realised that just like them, many women purchase a dinner dress that is often worn only once or twice before languishing in the cupboard, putting to waste the time, effort and money that went into finding that dress.
A dress rental service, on the other hand, can fulfil that same need without the extravagant price tag and wastefulness. It offers the opportunity to be fashion forward but in a more sustainable manner given that many women may “rent and wear” the same gown.
Spurred by these ideas, Law set up Lola Gown with Lee in 2017 and since then, more and more women have become fans of their dress rental service, with customers not just in the Klang Valley but also from Johor, Penang, Malacca and Sarawak.
“We both like to dress up and style ourselves and wear something nice but we didn’t want Lola Gown to be just a boutique that sells clothes. We really liked the idea of sustainability and recycling and helping people look good on a budget,” says Law.
She adds that Lola Gown is basically a rent and sell platform so apart from renting the dresses, customers can also purchase them. The dresses are sourced both locally and from countries such as China. Lola Gown also has an in-house team which designs dresses exclusively for the brand.
Rental charges range from RM180 to RM2,000 depending on the dress, while the rental period usually covers four to eight days. Longer periods can be negotiated for gowns that the customer needs to ship overseas for photoshoots, weddings or other special events.
Law says customers can look at the choices on offer at their website. All the dresses featured come with details on sizing and fit, and information on fabric and embellishments as well as rental charges. Once they have made a selection, a customer pays the deposit and rental charges and Lola Gown will courier the selected dress to her address. Once the rental period is over, the customer just has to courier the dress back to the company.
“If it’s an urgent request, we can even arrange to have the dress sent out on the same day of the booking although additional charges may apply, says Law.
Those who prefer to try on the dresses before selection can make an appointment to visit Lola Gown’s showroom in Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur for a fitting before proceeding with rental.
Law says most women who shop online regularly would be quite comfortable making a choice via their website. However, Lola Gown decided to have a physical showroom because some customers still prefer to try something on first before acquiring it, whether for rent or sale.
Sometimes, outstation customers who are on holiday in Kuala Lumpur drop by the showroom to see what’s on offer and try out different gowns. This makes it easier for them to confirm their selection later, once they’re back home.
“Getting a dinner dress is a very personal thing for most women and we’re happy to accommodate their different needs.”
After a certain period, past season clothing will be put up for sale at discounted prices. However, Lola Gown usually ensures that a dress has been fully utilised for rental first before it is sold off. While most of its gowns are rented out to customers who have formal events to attend like dinner or cocktail parties and weddings, during the low season, Lola