Renttherunway.com - Netflix for dresses

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/09/technology/09runway.html?ref=business

by raptrex • 17 years ago

41 20 17 years ago

physcab• 17 years ago

Something like this seems like it could learn something from fast food--keep the cost of dresses low to attract a broad audience and upsell on all the accessories. I know several of my friends who pick up those supermarket magazines to get their latest celebrity fashion (news?) and gossip whatever, and if there was an ad right next to those pictures "Rent this outfit right now on RTR"...that would be killer.

bravura• 17 years ago

I think the price point is correct, because the goal is luxury within reach.

If you are going to agonize over what dress you are going to wear to a special event, under $50 is too little for the whole "experience".

callmeed• 17 years ago

I actually saw the site on my wife's screen a couple days ago. A lot of her friends were commenting about it in facebook.

While it's a cool concept, I can't see it being more than a novelty long-term. Dresses like that aren't worn every day.

DanielStraight• 17 years ago

Dresses like that aren't worn every day by average women, but on average, women wear dresses like that every day. If that made no sense, what I'm saying is that given enough women, dresses like that are worn every day by one of them. Since you can't rent a dress more than once a day anyway, an overall every day seems like enough. It doesn't matter if everyone wears dresses like that all the time, only if at all times, someone is wearing a dress like that.

smanek• 17 years ago

I don't get how they get around the fit issue.

Whenever I've been dragged dress shopping, I've never seen a girl try less than a dozen dresses before finding one that she thinks accentuates the right things, hangs right, etc.

I would never rent a suit online - I'd rather get a bad suit that was tailored/fit well than the best suit with a poor fit.

michellegreer1• 17 years ago

Valid point. If you are going to something that warrants a high-end dress, the fit is the most important part. I have been that woman who spent four hours at Neiman's Last Call.

netcan• 17 years ago

I'm just throwing up ideas here but isn't it possible that this can be addressed by limiting selection. No dresses that are a good fit for only a small portion of the population. If it only looks good in a size 8-12, it's only available in those sizes, etc.

kyro• 17 years ago

In the world or high end fashion, couture, etc, it's almost a constant for women to be a size 0 or 2. Designers don't make 10 different sizes. They'll only make 1 or 2 which is enough to fit the type of women who tend to wear their clothes.

pmorici• 17 years ago

Acording to the article it sounds like they are hedging on pre sales expert advice and double stick tape.

Shana• 17 years ago

Student person- I need this. That is all. You need to look good for certain things in life. I would be renting like mad because after a while, you know your size range....

ujnubub• 17 years ago

This is HN

Once you own a pair of jeans, a black T shirt and either Tevas or hiking boots (depending on which coast) you are pretty much set.

ramidarigaz• 17 years ago

I'm impressed. You just described my wardrobe quite accurately. Technically the shoes are "light hiking shoes", but you get the idea.

/tangent

mseebach• 17 years ago

I, for one, am tired of the stereotype that geeks can't be expected to maintain a wardrobe of nice clothes, understand what goes with one's bodyshape, skin-tone and how to mix fits, patterns and colors etc.

clistctrl• 17 years ago

On a typical day I wear a nice pair of jeans, a white collared shirt, and a sweater.

/programmer in Boston

huangm• 17 years ago

Seems like a great idea, especially since a lot of higher-end dresses that are worn for special occasions are typically only worn a couple times.

Their average rental period is ~4 days for approximately 10% of retail price, and they send 2 sizes to you (which somewhat resolves the fit issue).

Small technical gripe: The images on their website are ~300kb and take way too long to load. They don't seem to have a technical person on the founding team, but I'm sure they will work such issues out as they get more popular.

wglb• 17 years ago

I showed this to my wife. She tried to sign up, and is now on a "membership waiting list". Not good.

ryanwaggoner• 17 years ago

This kind of company has to shell out a lot of money as they scale up, which means they may not be able to meet initial demand. It's a good problem to have.

phil_KartMe2• 17 years ago

I've heard the Rent the Runway team is looking for a full time drupal developer in NYC. contact me if interested - phil at kartme.com

phil_KartMe2• 17 years ago

not sure why my post got downvoted. the opening is for real. founders of Rent the Runway are good friends.

apologies if this isn't the place for job postings.

melsorial• 17 years ago

WearTodayGoneTomorrow.com has been doing this for almost a year! WTGT loans nationally at 5 – 10% retail values, has had amazing reviews from Teen Vogue, People, InStyle, The Today Show and many more. Items arrive in 2 – 3 days, and they carry over 125 of the top designers including 3.1 Phillip Lim, Herve Leger, Matthew Williamson and more. They’re amazing!

Renttherunway.com - Netflix for dresses

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