In a nod to the growing interest in owning high-quality pre-owned fashion, Rent the Runway is making pre-worn inventory available through Saks Off 5th.
The curated selection that includes hundreds of styles from more than 60 designer brands now available on saksoff5th.com expands Rent the Runway’s existing resale offering and expands the platform channel of potential customers by providing another way to experience the goods of her.
SaksOff5th.com now has a dedicated “pre-owned” section that will highlight the range of Rent the Runway inventory to direct shoppers to these items. Customers can browse and purchase items for various occasions at up to 85 percent off the original retail price.
Brands carried for the first time on SaksOff5th.com include Ba&sh, Thakoon Collective, Marissa Webb, Prabal Gurung and Adam Lippes Collective, while the partnership has also brought expanded offerings from Equipment, Derek Lam 10 Crosby, Tanya Taylor, Tibi and Ganni. among other brands.
The partnership comes on the heels of a recent study by Saks Off 5th, in which more than 70 percent of consumers revealed they had previously purchased clothing, footwear or accessories. Additionally, 80 percent of the 5,000 shoppers surveyed indicated they want the opportunity to buy pre-owned fashion directly from Saks Off 5th.
“At Saks Off 5th, we are focused on providing access to designer fashion at an exceptional value and continue to look for innovative ways to expand our offering and deliver on that promise to our customers,” said Paige Thomas, president and the CEO. Saks Off 5, in a statement. “Through this unique relationship with Rent the Runway, we are introducing new brands, offering exceptional deals and offering pre-owned apparel from a trusted partner that resonates with our customers.”
A representative from Rent the Runway told Sourcing Journal that the inventory will remain online only at this point. Saks Off 5th described the partnership as a way to expand its own assortment.
“At this time, we are focused on launching this initiative at SaksOff5th.com,” a representative for Saks Off 5th told Sourcing Journal. “However, we continue to explore opportunities to grow our pre-owned in-store and online presence.”
Saks Off 5th’s online business is technically a separate company from the brick-and-mortar Saks Off 5th operation. In June 2021, private equity firm Insight Partners invested $200 million in the off-price luxury e-commerce retailer as it split from its brick-and-mortar counterpart, valuing it at roughly $1 billion. Saks Off, 5th parent Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) split both the retail operations of Saks Fifth Avenue and Hudson’s Bay in the same way, so that the physical and digital businesses of each brand became independent companies .
For both Saks Off 5th and Rent the Runway, the sales potential is staggering. The 2022 Resale Report from ThredUp and GlobalData shows that the global used goods market is expected to grow by 24 percent in 2022 after 32 percent growth in the US last year. The report predicts that growth in this area could reach 127 percent by 2026, or three times faster than the overall apparel market.
“This partnership with Saks Off 5th strengthens and amplifies Rent the Runway’s mission to introduce an even wider audience to the great value — both environmental and financial — of pre-loved fashion,” said Jennifer Hyman, CEO and Co-Founder, Rent the Runway. , in a statement. “Whether it’s rental or resale, the secondhand economy is a critical part of creating a more sustainable future for our industry. Saks Off 5th is known for offering incredible designer goods at great prices, which is a fantastic starting point to educate more consumers and help extend the life of these garments.”
Rent the Runway is still trying to steer to profitability, coming off a first quarter in which it posted a $42.5 million net loss after a 2021 that saw it post a $211.8 million total loss.
As such, RTR has shifted its business model post-IPO, away from a capital-heavy wholesale buy-and-hold model toward asset-efficient strategies such as buying inventory from brands with no or low initial cost and sharing a portion. of income. The luxury rental service has sought to mitigate product depreciation, which was a heavy cost to the business after it was forced to clean stains and repair the wear and tear of a used garment over time.
So far, that bet, along with a focus on its Exclusive Designs collections, seems to be working. The company has recovered all the subscribers it lost during the Covid-19 pandemic, when it closed its five brick-and-mortar stores and removed its unlimited membership. Its active subscriber base grew 82 percent to nearly 135,000 by the end of the quarter, a 17 percent increase from the previous quarter and its highest quarter-end number ever.
As part of the new partnership, Saks Off 5th will purchase certified stock from Rent the Runway, sell it and fulfill orders out of Pottsville, Penn. warehouse, helping the latter clear out old inventory. All items are considered “excellent condition” by Rent the Runway and will be identified on SaksOff5th.com by a Rent the Runway badge.
This isn’t the first partnership of this nature for Rent the Runway, which sold used clothing through select Nordstrom Rack stores in a short-lived pilot in early 2020 and also had a similar deal with ThredUp’s online platform. Saks Off 5th entered the pre-owned market in 2020 as well with luxury vintage retailer LXR, which offers vintage handbags and leather accessories from brands such as Prada, Celine, Gucci and Louis Vuitton.
