The Fashion Techie

What If You Could Rent From Carrie Bradshaw’s Closet? Meet Rent The Runway

March 5th, 2010

I had the pleasure of interviewing  Jenn Hyman, the co-founder of Rent The Runway (RTR) . RTR has a unique business model that allows fashionistas to rent high end fashion apparel! Seriously… who wouldn’t love that?  Founded by two super smart and chic Harvard Business School graduates, RTR is literally the “Netflix of Fashion” and every recessionistas dream.

Online, some call you the “Netflix of fashion” because of your unique business model. Can you tell us what RTR is and how it works?

Rent the Runway is high fashion delivered to your doorstep for every woman whose ever felt that she has a closet full of clothes but nothing to wear. We enable women to rent designer dresses starting at just $50 for special occasion in their life – and in this way, we’re helping women experiment with new designers, new trends and have more fun with fashion without the stress of purchasing a dress you know you’ll only wear once. Once a woman is invited to our site, they’re encouraged to browse by date, color, style, occasion, or trend, to find an amazing dress from designers that include Herve Leger, Matthew Williamson, Proenza Schouler, and over 45 more. When she’s selected a dress she’d like to rent, she can choose the date she’d like it to arrive, and we’ll ship it to her in two sizes to ensure the perfect fit. Once she’s done, she can send it back in our pre-paid envelope and we’ll take care of all the rest! Starting at the beginning of April, you can rent accessories alongside your dress – so that you can get the complete look.

The story I’m most interested in is conception. Founded by two women, both Harvard Business School grads and both named Jennifer. It sounds like a perfect match! How did you meet and how did the idea of RTR form?

I (Jenn Hyman) met Jenny at Harvard Business School where they were close friends and sectionmates. Over Thanksgiving break, I was back home in NYC and saw my very fashionable younger sister Becky (now Rent the Runway’s accessory buyer!) struggle with what to what to wear to an upcoming wedding. Becky wanted to wear Marchesa or Herve Leger or Matthew Williamson, but on her meager salary a designer experience seemed impossible. I thought about the huge amount of social pressure there is for women to constantly refresh their wardrobe (especially as Facebook kills outfits – you can no longer wear that hot dress with two different groups of friends) and the high expense of doing this. Often we accommodate by wearing the same old LBD from our closet or buying something cheap that doesn’t make us feel as fabulous or beautiful as we’d like. I thought – what if women like Becky could have the dream? Access to the ultimate closet without the guilt. A few days later I came back to school and told Jenny about Becky’s dilemma and they went to work creating a company. A short time later, Rent the Runway was born!

How important of a part does technology and social media play in promoting and marketing RTR?
Very important! We love social media because it allows us to interact with our members and really understand what they’re looking for. We’re working on even more ways to integrate social media into our site, like allowing people to ask their friends what dress the prefer, sharing rentals or faves with their friends, and more. We also get some of our best feedback on twitter and facebook and get to see some of our customers in their dresses when they share them with us on facebook!

If RTR could give other online retailers advice on standing out from the massive online crowd, what would it be?

We try and make our clothes and our brand accessible but we understand that women want to rent the more fashion-forward editorial dresses that they wouldn’t necessarily buy. We listen to our customers and try to create a memorable experience by making our stylists available by chat or by phone to ensure that any customer can understand what works for them and what doesn’t.

RTR is a huge supporter of top named designers.  However, are there emerging designers that RTR offers to their renters? If so, what are some new talents that RTR loves?
We love Prabal Gurung, Christian Cota, and Frank Tell. We hope to add more emerging designers every season.

What makes RTR different from other fashion “rental” sites like Bag Borrow Steal?

We work directly with all of our designers to bring their fashion to women who would not normally have access to them because of the high price tag. We also aim to give women complete looks before all the special occasions in their life.

Lastly, if RTR could be summed up in one sentence, what would it be?
RTR is access to the Carrie Bradshaw closet – without the high price commitment!

Join Rent The Runway: http://www.renttherunway.com/

RTR on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/RentTheRunway

RTR on Twitter: http://twitter.com/renttherunway