‘The Airbnb Of Fashion’: How By Rotation Redefined Party Wear For The Conscious Consumer
With the festive season in full swing and social calendars filling up, get ready for a flurry of party dress hauls, outfit dilemmas and last-minute buys. AKA, one-time wears destined to gather dust in the back of a wardrobe. Eshita Kabra-Davies, the brains behind the fashion rental platform By Rotation, wants to change all that.
Dubbing itself the ‘Airbnb of fashion’, By Rotation invites renters to sift through lenders’ wardrobes; indulging in luxury brands and trends without the associated dent in their bank accounts. “The story is, I was basically a shopaholic,” says Kabra. “I was born in India but grew up in Singapore. In Singapore, our national hobbies were shopping and eating, and I excelled in the former.”
After moving to London to work in finance, the turning point came while planning her honeymoon to Rajasthan in 2018. Envisioning a wardrobe borrowed from social media influencers she admired, she began conceptualising a fashion-sharing platform. “On my honeymoon, I also witnessed a huge amount of textile waste in my suburban hometown in India, which I hadn’t been back to in around 14 years,” she says. She realised the clothes she was buying and later donating or discarding were likely ending up in landfills across Asia or Africa, triggering a wave of guilt and a determination to set up her own solution.
In 2019, By Rotation emerged with a clear mission: to champion the sharing economy. Today, with over 330,000 registered users, the platform has expanded from the UK to the US, with lenders across 28 states. On the website or app, lenders can upload their pieces – whether high-street, designer or vintage – for customers to rent for a day, a week or longer. You can browse by item, brand or price, with the option to pick up items directly from lenders if they’re based close by. The app has also successfully tapped into a niche of micro-influencers adept at navigating ever-changing fashion trends. Beyond aiding these individuals in recouping some rather extreme fashion investments, it also opens an inclusive avenue for others to enjoy designer pieces at a fraction of their usual cost (typically priced at 10% of retail for a two-day period) – you can find a Prada bag to rent for £100 that has a retail value of over £3,500. Essentially, it serves as a bridge, connecting fashion enthusiasts with a desire for sustainability and accessibility in a space where great style seamlessly aligns with affordability.
At the heart of its peer-to-peer service is the vibrant community By Rotation has built. Kabra states: “We are only as good as the people on our app” – a philosophy that resonates in the lively and fashion-forward ‘sisterhood’ the brand has fostered, often hosting events such as panel discussions for conscious consumption. Kabra herself lists up to 90% of her own wardrobe. Even big names have become lenders, such as Dame Helen Mirren – who channels all proceeds from her wardrobe to support Women For Women, a charity helping survivors of war rebuild their lives.
From Chanel to KNWLS, Annie’s Ibiza to Bottega Veneta, By Rotation presents an enticing alternative to Gen Z’s penchant for fast fashion and one-time buys. Kabra stresses, “We must acknowledge consumer habits. There are times when we fancy a green feathered dress for a party, fully aware we might not wear it again, and that’s OK! Yet, we can do this without damaging the environment so much.” Her strategy is certainly resonating as the landscape evolves, with a surge in people embracing the sharing economy. Most recently, By Rotation partnered with the luxury e-commerce site Net-A-Porter, curating an exclusive collection available to rent on the platform.
Kabra’s vision for By Rotation stretches far beyond fashion; she sees the platform expanding into homeware and art. “Imagine, it’s your big birthday bash and you can rent a Picasso!” she says. While the appetite for renting clothes grows slowly but surely, the realisation dawns that owning a garment isn’t the crux; it’s about how you wear it and the memorable occasions it’s a part of.
Pia Brynteson is Digital Editor at Service95
