Resuited and rebooted: Why more of us are dedicated borrowers of fashion
High Street giants back trend for hiring not buying outfits
Restrictions permitting, it’s that time of year when we would normally try to beg, steal or borrow the perfect party dress.
Well, this year, more of us will be borrowing as more and more fashion followers choose to hire, not buy.
They call it circular fashion, as clothes get cycled again and again, with experts crediting a move away from fast fashion and its impact on the environment with, in Scotland alone, 330,000 tonnes of clothes going to landfill every year.
Marks & Spencer are the among the retailers getting on board after making a range of womenswear available to hire ahead of the festive party season.
The trend is supported by celebrities such as Holly Willoughby, Laura Whitmore and Stacey Dooley, who hire dresses worth thousands of pounds from online firms, before returning them to the rental library for other fashion conscious women to loan. The prime minister’s wife Carrie Johnson emerged as a pioneer of the trend when she rented her £2,870 Christos Costarellos wedding dress from the My Wardrobe HQ site, which was promptly deluged by inquiries about hiring clothes and
accessories from the world’s top designers.
M&S says the trial will enable the retailer to better understand shoppers’ changing habits in a world where customers are increasingly thinking about the sustainability of their purchases.
Dresses from the vintage designer X Ghost collaboration, up to a value of £300, will be available under a trial with fire firm Hirestreet, along with jumpers, coats and trousers, from four to 30 days, with prices starting at £13.99.
M&S says it hopes the venture will support its customers’ increasing interest in circular fashion, a concept that means every part of the lifespan of a garment is cyclical. David Bates, M&S regional manager for Scotland West, said: “We’re delighted to be trialling our first clothing rental opportunity in Scotland in partnership with Hirestreet.
“Clothing rental is a growing trend, yet we know so far a lot of the focus for this market has been London-based, so we’re
excited to be offering this to our customers far and wide.”
Circular fashion starts with design of a piece and how much longevity and timelessness it has, then on to the materials and whether or not they are sustainable, before the making of the item – is its production fair and ethical?; are workers and animals rights being upheld? Once the piece has become tired, it should be repaired or redesigned, then – rather than being binned – rented, swapped or sold as second-hand. All this means less will be bought and less will be left ruining our planet.
Environmental charity Hubbub conducted a survey as part of their campaign urging people not to buy new party outfits for the festivities and instead to wear what they already have, swap or rent. The Scottish stats revealed 22% were planning to wear clothes they already owned for the Christmas party season.
One in eight respondents said they usually buy at least one new outfit for events over the festivities – and 12% said they are planning to buy something new to wear this December.
When it came to considering the impact on the environment, 8% said they were planning to buy something second-hand, and just 3% said they were considering renting or hiring a dress.
Lynn Wilson, founder of Circular Economy Wardrobe, however, said only time will tell if initiatives to rent clothes will work for Scottish customers.
“The problem with fast fashion is that a lot of it is dumped in the bin,” she said. “The cost of clothes going to landfill in Scotland is about £14 million.
“Clothing rental is a step forward in getting this figure down, but, if they can buy a dress on the high street for the same price, rental really needs to have an incentive. Maybe knocking the VAT off could make it more attractive.
“We also need to make these services more accessible, and make it more carbon neutral as 90% of clothing is bought on the internet and ordering hire dresses online which are travelling back and forward across the country – even if hired – isn’t good for the planet.”
Wilson says hire schemes give us opportunities, but the burning question is are they the right opportunities?
“I’m not sure we have fully understood what renting can do for us yet and I’m not convinced we have worked out the best routes for fashion rental,” she said.
“We don’t know yet how it works out from a consumer perspective. Just because you hire a dress, does that mean it will replace a purchase? Or will you still buy two Christmas party dresses anyway?
“The psyche of society is that we shouldn’t be seen twice on Instagram in the same outfit.
“I was a teen in the ’80s and we were so creative. It was all about DIY fashion. But now, you can buy a dress for the same price as a Big Mac.
“It’s fast fashion, fast life, fast future. Our lives are moving so fast we don’t have time to absorb them.”