Rent the Runway launches first data-driven collaborative collection

Rent the Runway, the rental service offering apparel and accessories by over 600 brands, now has a brand to call its own. The online retailer is partnering up with prominent fashion designers to create pieces that cater specifically to its customers. “We have millions of data points that our customers provide about wear rate, where they’re wearing the clothes, fit by style and sizes, demand by hem line, sleeve length, demand by geo region etc, and all the feedback in funneled to our designer”, a spokesperson for the company told FashionUnited by email. The project is called “Designer Collective”.

For the debut collection, Rent the Runway has partnered up with Jason Wu, Derek Lam and Prabal Gurung. Each designer has contributed 10-15 styles, with more pieces to be added either quarterly or twice a year, depending on the designer. Rental prices average at 350 US dollar per piece. The company is already in talks with other designers to expand the project in the near future.

Founded in 2009, Rent the Runway is the leading fashion rental service in the US, with over 10 million subscribers. The company received a valuation of 750 million US dollars in 2016, according to PitchBook.

Pictures: courtesy of Rent the Runway