Renting Clothes Was Supposed to Be the Future of Fashion. Then Shoppers Got Bored.

livemint.com:

Rent the Runway is betting that clothing from designers Diane von Furstenberg and Jason Wu can get customers to keep their subscriptions. Rival clothing subscription service Stitch Fix is staking its future on private brands. The different directions are part of companies’ bids to stem steep subscriber losses in recent months and declines in their stock-market valuations.

Both companies are struggling to convince Americans to make monthly payments of roughly $90 to $240 for rented clothes, with many of their consumers also complaining about a lack of diversity in styles and sizes, and availability of outfits. Executives say their problems are fixable, and are rethinking what inventory to carry to keep shoppers engaged. “Our subscriber base didn’t decline because of an uncertain economic backdrop, but because we didn’t have the right inventory levels for our customers," Rent the Runway Chief Executive Jennifer Hyman told The Wall Street Journal in an interview.

Consumers initially embraced paying for a subscription to rent designer clothes for the office and special events. Subscribers could also avoid stores by having a box of outfits, picked by a professional stylist, delivered to their home. However, more than three years after Covid-19 reordered the retail landscape, Rent the Runway and Stitch Fix continue to fight the effects that working from home has had on fashion preferences.

Many consumers have prioritized spending on experiences over apparel as inflation has pinched budgets. Tailwinds that were expected to help the businesses—more people shopping online and being interested in sustainability—haven’t translated into consistent profits. At the same time, newer entrants like Nuuly and Armoire have also sought to