By Alicia Fiorletta, Senior Editor
Subscription commerce models have seen a surge over the past couple of years, due to the success of companies like Birchbox and Rent The Runway. Although their business models somewhat differ, both companies were established to help consumers save money while giving them the opportunity to try before they buy.
As I was reading through my daily dose of industry email newsletters, I came across a story from The Washington Post about a company called Wearhop.
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Because children grow so quickly, for so long, Katerina Newell founded Wearhop to provide parents – like herself – with more affordable fashion prices for their children.
“It was like, well, I bought this dress for my daughter, she wore it a few times and now it’ll never see the light of day again,” Newell said in the article. “I just kept thinking there had to be a better way.”
Wearhop is an online rental service for children’s clothing. With approximately 1,000 items up for grabs for boys and girls, parents can rent pieces on a monthly basis. The prices vary depending on the length of the rental period, and whether a product is new or used.
Initially, Newell invested $60,000 of her own funds to start up the business by buying products and setting up the web site. In the article, she noted that 2013 revenue totaled at least $10,000 and that she expects sales to triple in 2014.
Wearhop has the opportunity to really stand out for a few key reasons:
- It addresses a need: How many times have you (or someone you know) complained because your child grew out of a pair of shoes or piece of clothing he or she only wore once! Talk about frustrating. Rather than collecting hoards of apparel and stuffing them in garbage backs, you can simply return something when it no longer fits, or if you’re sick of it!
- It gives consumers a taste of “the finer things”: The reality is not many people have the opportunity to buy their infants or toddlers designer apparel. They either don’t have the financial ability to, or they simply think it’s silly to spend so much money on something that will only fit for a limited period of time. (Refer back to point number one.) Yet Wearhop gives people the opportunity to dress their daughters in fun, foofy, designer dresses, and their sons in designer suits. Now, they have access to a wider variety of products and brands.
- Customers can try before they buy!: Although the key goal for Wearhop is to help parents spend less on their children’s clothing, they also have the opportunity to buy the products they rent! This shows there’s flexibility in the business model, which consumers are always looking for.
- There’s nothing like it: Sure, there are plenty of online destinations like Rent The Runway that speak to the needs of full-grown women…but I’ve never seen anything like this for kids. The key part to standing out is creating a completely new business concept, and I think Wearhop does just that! The only company that is similar is Borrow Mini Couture, but personally, I think the price points are a tad high, despite the rental perk.
Although it is still early days for Wearhop, I think this is a really fun concept. What do you all think? Will the company thrive in 2014? Share your thoughts in the comment section below, or tweet me at @AliciaFiorletta!
