Fashion rental as a new and innovative channel alongside fashion retail

Frame of the research: The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the megatrends reshaping the fashion industry and fashion retail companies are innovating, reshaping and revising their service-mix in order to respond to the new challenges of this dynamic and uncertain competitive context. Purpose of the paper: The purpose of this paper is to investigate fashion rental as a new alternative channel or a collateral channel to fashion retail from a business perspective. Methodology: Qualitative research was carried out in Italy, with semi-structured interviews with CEO founders of fashion rental enterprises and a case study on the Please Don’t Buy project launched by the Twinset luxury fashion company. Findings: The findings reveal the opportunities and challenges related to fashion rental as a new channel through which fashion companies can respond to the sustainable consumption patterns of consumers. Research limits: As the study is built on a qualitative research design and a single case study, the findings are not generalizable, although they allow for an in-depth analysis of the fashion rental channel. Practical implications: The study has managerial implications for established fashion brands wanting to collaborate with fashion rental platforms or to engage directly with fashion rental following in the steps of the Twinset project. It is also relevant for start-ups interested in launching their own digital rental platforms. Originality of the paper: This study is the first to examine fashion rental as a new channel alongside fashion retail, and to wonder if, in response to changing fashion consumption patterns, retail sales channels will continue to dominate the fashion industry or will gradually be replaced in part by these new rental channels.